Illness

Pronunciation: /ˈɪlnəs/

Definitions of illness

noun a disease or period of sickness affecting the body or mind

Example Sentences

A1 She missed school due to illness.

A2 He was diagnosed with a mild illness.

B1 The doctor prescribed medication for her chronic illness.

B2 The illness spread quickly throughout the community.

C1 His illness was exacerbated by stress and lack of sleep.

C2 The illness had a profound impact on her quality of life.

Examples of illness in a Sentence

formal The patient was diagnosed with a serious illness that required immediate treatment.

informal She's been feeling under the weather lately, might be coming down with an illness.

slang I can't go out tonight, I'm feeling really sick - must be some kind of illness.

figurative Holding onto grudges is like a mental illness that can eat away at your happiness.

Grammatical Forms of illness

• plural: illnesses
• comparative: more ill
• superlative: most ill
• present tense: illness
• future tense: will be ill
• perfect tense: has been ill
• continuous tense: is being ill
• singular: illness
• positive degree: ill
• infinitive: to be ill
• gerund: being ill
• participle: illnessed

Origin and Evolution of illness

First Known Use: 1250 year

Language of Origin: Old English

Story behind the word: The word 'illness' originated from the Old English word 'ilnes' which meant 'badness, evil, wickedness'.

Evolution of the word: Over time, the word 'illness' shifted in meaning to refer to a state of poor health or disease, moving away from its original connotations of moral wrongdoing.