ill [not before noun] especially British English suffering from a disease or not feeling well:
Her mother is seriously ill in hospital. I woke up feeling really ill.sick especially American English ill:
She’s been sick with the flu. a sick child Dan got sick on vacation.not very well [not before noun] ill, but not seriously ill:
Sarah’s not very well – she has a throat infection.unwell [not before noun] formal ill:
The singer had been unwell for some time. Symptoms include fever, aching muscles, and feeling generally unwell.poorly [not before noun] British English spoken ill:
Your grandmother’s been very poorly lately.in a bad way [not before noun] very ill because of a serious injury or disease:
You’d better call an ambulance – she looks like she’s in a bad way.be off sick British English,
be out sick American English to be not at work because of an illness:
Two teachers were off sick yesterday.under the weather (
also off colour British English)
[not before noun] informal slightly ill:
Sorry I haven’t called you – I’ve been a bit under the weather lately. You look a bit off colour – are you sure you’re OK?run down [not before noun] feeling slightly ill and tired all the time, for example because you have been working too hard, or not eating well:
Some people take extra vitamins if they are feeling run down.in poor health unhealthy and often ill:
Chopin was already in poor health when he arrived on the island.delicate weak and likely to become ill easily:
She was delicate and pale and frequently complained of headaches. He had a delicate constitution and throughout his adult life suffered from various illnesses.sickly a sickly child is often ill:
He was a sickly child and spent a lot of time at home on his own. His younger daughter was sickly and died when she was young. [TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲