afflict
Syllables: af·flict/əˈflɪkt/
afflict verb: to cause (someone) pain, suffering or distress.
Verb
afflict (third-person singular simple present afflicts, present participle afflicting, simple past and past participle afflicted)
- To cause (someone) pain, suffering or distress.
- Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses. But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were grieved because of the children of Israel.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Exodus 1:11–12
- Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Leviticus 23:27
- To strike or cast down; to overthrow; to result.
- reassembling our afflicted powers1667, John Milton, “Book I”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished...
- To make low or humble.
- The Argument of mine afflicted stile1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book I”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC
- Men are apt to prefer a prosperous error before an afflicted truth.1651, Jer[emy] Taylor, The Rule and Exercises of Holy Living. […], 2nd edition, London: […] Francis Ashe […], →OCLC
afflict meaning in Tamil, Urdu, Bengali and Malayalam
afflict in Tamil
- அல்லற்படுத்து, துயருறுத்து, இடுக்கண்படுத்து, தொல்லைபடுத்து, நச்சரி, எரிச்சலுட்டு
afflict in Urdu
- آفت توڑنا, اذیت دینا, دکھ دینا, مصیبت دینا, پیسنا
afflict in Bengali
- যন্ত্রণা দেওয়া, কষ্ট দেওয়া, পীড়িত করা, দুর্দশাগ্রস্ত করা
afflict in Malayalam
- പീഡിപ്പിക്കുക, തുടരെ ഉപദ്രവിക്കുക, സങ്കടപ്പെടുത്തുക, ക്ലേശിപ്പിക്കുക
More languagesFewer languages
- afflict in Kannada
- ಬಾಧಿಸು, ಪೀಡಿಸು, ನೋಯಿಸು, ಕ್ಲೇಷಪಡಿಸು
- afflict in Sanskrit
- शुष् śuṣ, जुष् juṣ, तंस् taṃs
- afflict in Persian
- آزردن âzordan, دچار کردن dočâr kardan, دامنگیر کردن dâman-gir kardan
Synonyms of afflict
19 more synonymsFewer synonyms
Forms of afflict
| third-person singular present | afflicts |
|---|---|
| present participle | afflicting |
| past participle | afflicted |
| past | afflicted |
Origin of afflict
From Middle English afflicten (attested in past participle afflicte), from Latin afflīctō (“to damage, harass, torment”), from ad- + flīctus, past participle of afflīgō (“strike, beat”), from ad- + flīgō (“strike”) (whence af-).
Words formed from afflict
Words that rhyme with afflict
Questions about afflict
- What does afflict mean?
- Afflict means to cause (someone) pain, suffering or distress.
- What is afflict in Tamil?
- Afflict in Tamil is அல்லற்படுத்து, துயருறுத்து, இடுக்கண்படுத்து. See Afflict meaning in Tamil.
- What part of speech is afflict?
- Afflict is a verb.
- How do you pronounce afflict?
- Afflict is pronounced /əˈflɪkt/.
- What is the past tense of afflict?
- The past tense of afflict is afflicted.
Words near afflict in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: afflict (page history and authors); afflict (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); afflict (Urdu Wiktionary) (page history and authors); afflict (Bengali Wiktionary) (page history and authors); afflict (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); afflict (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors); जुष् (Sanskrit) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-afflict.wav.
Cite this entry: “afflict.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/afflict. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.