# What's a better word for feeling "sick" **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 2, 2023, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478 "2023-11-02T15:33:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/1 "2023-11-02T15:33:00Z")
So random musing while feeling, well… sick, with some manner of cold/flu thing. It seems when you have some manner of respiratory bug like cold/flu/covid saying you are feeling sick is not actually the best word to use. As feeling sick implies you are feeling like your going to _be_ sick, and that’s not usually the case. E.g. right now I’m feeling incredibly crappy, and like I might cough up lung, but I’m not in any danger of throwing up. So what is a better word to use instead? Nausea also implies you are feeling like you are going to vomit. Fatigue or lethargy covers part of it, but that could also just mean you didn’t sleep last night, and it’s more than that. Is there a better word out there? Given how big a part of the human condition this kind of generic respiratory bug is (especially for those of us with school aged kids ☹ ) you’d think there would be a more precise word. Do other languages have one? ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/2 "2023-11-02T15:35:31Z")
How about feeling ill? I don’t associate feeling ill to wanting to puke, but that’s just me. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/3 "2023-11-02T15:43:58Z")
I don’t associate “feeling sick” with “feeling nauseated”, personally. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/4 "2023-11-02T15:45:54Z")
I usually use the word “sick” in that case. If I feel like I’m going to be worshipping the porcelain goddess soon, I use the word “nauseous” instead. Or maybe “feeling pukey”. I also use feeling crappy as an alternate. Feeling “ill” as already suggested seems like a good alternate to me. Having a general feeling of malaise is kinda wordy and clunky, but it is more precise. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/5 "2023-11-02T15:52:00Z")
Some dialects use “be sick” as a euphemism for “vomiting”. Some don’t. I grew up with that use, but I don’t consider “be sick” to exclusively mean “vomiting”. That’s about meaning number 4 or 5. A word I use for the general “I ain’t right” feeling is “malaise”. It encompasses lethargy, but includes more general dysfunction and discomfort. Without specifically calling out any stomach, lower GI, respiratory, or musculo-skeletal symptoms. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/6 "2023-11-02T15:56:51Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Some dialects use “be sick” as a euphemism for “vomiting”. Some don’t. Yeah. In my dialect, i might say “i feel sick to my stomach”. I have used “cat sick” as a euphemism for “cat vomit”, and i usually can recognize by context when someone means “he vomited” but says “he was sick”. But usually they use additional words, like, “he was sick all over the carpet”. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/7 "2023-11-02T16:08:13Z")
It should be adverbial: “I’m feeling sickly.” Or “poorly”. Or “Like a sack full of assholes with the good ones picked out.” ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/8 "2023-11-02T16:14:30Z")
Under the weather. Not at my best. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/9 "2023-11-02T16:17:03Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I don’t associate “feeling sick” with “feeling nauseated”, personally. Same here. “Sick” doesn’t have that automatic connotation with nausea in my dialect (SE Louisiana, USA). Expressions like “_I think I’m gonna be sick_” are understood in context, but aren’t commonly said by locals. @griffin1977 , from which speech community do you hail? ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/10 "2023-11-02T16:19:04Z")
If I wanna get outta doing something I say I might be _infected_ Works every time. ---
**Author:** ![veryfrank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/87869e/32.png) [@veryfrank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/veryfrank)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/11 "2023-11-02T16:28:49Z")
I tend to say “I feel like forty miles of rough road.” I’m I’m with my closest friends, I might say “I feel like ass.” ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/12 "2023-11-02T16:35:53Z")
Over here we’d probably be more passive and say “not feeling well”. ---
**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/13 "2023-11-02T17:14:21Z")
> [@dolphinboy](#): > > How about feeling ill? I don’t associate feeling ill to wanting to puke, but that’s just me. Yeah that’s probably the best option. But if anything maybe that’s too generic? Like it doesn’t necessarily mean feeling like you are going to be sick, but it could mean having a headache or any other illness. ---
**Author:** ![xtenkfarpl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c2a13f/32.png) [@xtenkfarpl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xtenkfarpl)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/14 "2023-11-02T17:27:10Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Some dialects use “be sick” as a euphemism for “vomiting”. That’s rather a UK idiom, I think. Here in the UK we would be more likely to say “I don’t feel well” for a more general malaise, or “I don’t feel at all well” if it’s serious . Though of course the US usage is quite well understood. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/15 "2023-11-02T17:50:11Z")
> [@xtenkfarpl](#): > > Though of course the US usage is quite well understood. Perhaps, though there were a few years some while back where “sick” had become adolescent slang for “awesome”. I think that usage was transient and has since become passe, but I could be wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/16 "2023-11-02T17:53:30Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > “Like a sack full of assholes with the good ones picked out.” It’s a shame I won’t feel like being amusing next time I get a chance to use that phrase! ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/17 "2023-11-02T17:53:41Z")
Not doin’ so hot today. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/18 "2023-11-02T17:55:03Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Some dialects use “be sick” as a euphemism for “vomiting”. Some don’t. I grew up with that use, but I don’t consider “be sick” to exclusively mean “vomiting”. That’s about meaning number 4 or 5. I usually see that as “I feel like I’m going to be sick”, i.e. I feel nauseous - or “I’m going to be sick”, i.e. look out because I’m about to hurl in the next few seconds. “I feel sick” to me means someone has non-specific symptoms that are associated with some sort of infection - fever, chills, dizziness, cough, nasal congestion, sore throat and possibly also nausea. But it doesn’t specifically mean someone feels nauseous. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/19 "2023-11-02T17:56:15Z")
“I’ve been hit with a virus.” That’ll send people scurrying away from you pronto. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478/20 "2023-11-02T18:01:58Z")
> [@griffin1977](#): > > > [@dolphinboy](#): > > > > How about feeling ill? I don’t associate feeling ill to wanting to puke, but that’s just me. > > Yeah that’s probably the best option. But if anything maybe that’s too generic? Like it doesn’t necessarily mean feeling like you are going to be sick, but it could mean having a headache or any other illness. So you are looking for something specific to respiratory bugs? “Coming down with a cold” or “i have a cold” is what i use. Or, to be more specific: Sniffly Sneezing Congested I have a cough [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-better-word-for-feeling-sick/992478.md?page=2)