ailing
Americanadjective
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sickly; unwell.
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unsound or troubled.
a financially ailing corporation.
adjective
Etymology
Origin of ailing
Explanation
Someone who's ailing is sick. You might visit your ailing grandmother in the hospital. You can use the adjective ailing to describe someone who's very ill, or use it figuratively, to talk about "our ailing economy," or "the ailing school system." The next time you call in sick to work, you might say, "I can't come in today — I'm afraid I'm ailing." Ailing comes from the verb ail, "trouble or afflict," from the Old English eglan, "to trouble, plague, or pain."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
However, the aquatic mammal was already considered ailing and close to death when a final, last-ditch attempt was made earlier in May.
From BBC • May 31, 2026
“Primary Trust,” which is receiving its L.A. premiere at the Mark Taper Forum, is a tonic for ailing spirits.
From Los Angeles Times • May 29, 2026
It was sold as the ultimate fix for our ailing apparatus.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 28, 2026
Hoppock said Estelle was detained on a layover, as she traveled home from visiting her ailing father in France.
From Salon • May 14, 2026
Without money to go to a doctor I had no way of finding out what was ailing me.
From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
