adj

sick

SIHK

adj

Unwell; suffering from an illness.

"He stayed home from school because he felt sick."

"She looked after her sick grandmother all weekend."

Feeling nauseous, like you might vomit.

"The boat ride left half the passengers feeling sick."

Fed up with or tired of something that has gone on too long, usually as "sick of".

"I'm sick of hearing the same excuse every week."

Slang: extremely impressive or excellent.

"That skateboard trick was sick."

verb

To vomit, often phrased as "be sick".

"The dog was sick on the carpet after eating too fast."

How to Use Sick

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishIll, or, informally, so impressive it's amazing.

Common mistake

"Be sick" in British English usually means to vomit, while American English more often uses "sick" alone to mean generally unwell — context still matters in both.

When to use it

The "excellent" sense is casual slang — avoid it in formal writing.

Common pairings

feel sick sick of something call in sick sick leave

Word Forms

sicker comparative, sicked past tense, Sicks plural, sicks singular, sickest superlative

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He stayed home from school because he felt _____.

Etymology

From Old English seoc ("ill"), from a Germanic root meaning to be troubled or afflicted. The slang sense meaning "excellent" is a much later flip, similar to how "wicked" and "terrific" also came to mean something positive.

Rhymes for sick

ick tick kick nick pick rick wick mick hick lick Vick thick

See all rhymes for sick →