sick
adjEtymology
From Middle English sik, sike, seek, seke, seok, from Old English sēoc (“sick, ill”), from Proto-West Germanic *seuk, from Proto-Germanic *seukaz, from Proto-Indo-European *sewg- (“to be troubled or grieved”). See also West Frisian siik, Dutch ziek, German siech, Norwegian Bokmål syk, Norwegian Nynorsk sjuk, Danish syg; also Middle Irish socht (“silence, depression”), Old Armenian հիւծանիմ (hiwcanim, “to be weakening”). The "very good, excellent" sense is an ameliorative semantic shift from the original sense of "in poor health". Compare similar semantic development in terrific and wicked.
- derived from Sic
Definitions
In poor health
In poor health; ill.
- We have to care for the sick.
Having an urge to vomit.
- My daughter was violently sick three times in the night.
- Q. Didn't he complain he was sick before he commenced to vomit? A. He did, just before he said, to me, “I feel sick,” I asked him if he wanted to throw up and he said yes.
Mentally unstable, disturbed.
- You sick bastard!
- What a sick, sick feeling / To let you go, my dear
›+ 11 more definitionsshow fewer
In bad taste.
- That’s a sick joke.
[with of] Tired of or annoyed by (something that has lasted a long time or often recurs).
- sick and tired of the whining—sick of waiting—'sick of politics
- I’ve heard that song on the radio so many times that I’m starting to get sick of it.
- I’m so sick of that same old love, the kind that breaks your heart.
Very good, excellent, awesome, badass.
- This tune is sick.
- He showed off his sick surfing skills.
- Dude, this car's got a sick subwoofer!
In poor condition.
- sick building syndrome; my car is looking pretty sick; my job prospects are pretty sick
Failing to sustain adequate harvests of crop, usually specified.
Vomit.
- […] they're spitting and belching chunks of lentilly gunk. Looks like sick.
- The bogan, true to form, laps it up like a dog does its own sick.
(especially in the phrases on the sick and on long-term sick) Any of various current or…
(especially in the phrases on the sick and on long-term sick) Any of various current or former benefits or allowances paid by the Government to support the sick, disabled or incapacitated.
To vomit.
- I woke up at 4 am and sicked on the floor.
To fall sick
To fall sick; to sicken.
- Our great-grandsire, Edward, sick'd and died.
- Old man to pickney, so wave unno hand if you with me /To see the sufferation sick me.
Alternative spelling of sic (“set upon”).
- "Wapi," she almost screamed, "go back! Sick 'em, Wapi—sick 'em—sick 'em—sick 'em!"
- 1957, J. D. Salinger, "Zooey", in, 1961, Franny and Zooey, 1991 LB Books edition, page 154, "...is just something God sicks on people who have the gall to accuse Him of having created an ugly world."
A surname from German.
The neighborhood
Derived
airsick, altitude-sick, be sick, be taken sick, black-sick, brainsick, bussick, call in sick, call out sick, carsick, cropsick, dogsick, dope sick, euthyroid sick syndrome, fall sick, fancy-sick, get sick, greensick, guilt-sick, heartsick, heatsick, homesick, I'm sick, iron-sick, iron sick, ironsick, junk sick, junk-sick, landsick, lovesick, lungsick, lung sick, milt-sick, moonsick, nail sick, nailsick, never sick at sea, out sick, oversick, permasick · +82 more
Vish — recursive loop
A definitional loop anchored at sick. Each word in the ring is defined by the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself. Scroll to it and watch.
A definitional loop anchored at sick. Each word in the ring appears in the definition of the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself.
8 hops · closes at sick
curated · pre-corpus. live cycle detection across the full graph is the next major milestone.
sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA