INFECTED Synonyms: 63 Similar and Opposite Words

infected

verb

Definition of infected

past tense of infect

as in poisoned

to pass something harmful (such as a disease) to someone or something else If you come to work when you're sick, you'll infect everyone in the office.

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of infected With 15 cases documented so far this year, public health staff said the number of people infected with West Nile virus, half of whom live in the San Fernando Valley, outpaces the five-year average for this time period. — Matthew Rodriguez, CBS News, 21 Aug. 2026 Less than 1% of people infected get very sick with long-term brain or nerve problems. — Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 20 Aug. 2026 Since becoming infected with Vibrio, Ben’s struggled with chronic pain and open sores that won’t heal. — Cara Lynn Shultz, PEOPLE, 19 Aug. 2026 The outbreak has infected and killed more people at a greater speed than any other outbreak in history. — ABC News, 17 Aug. 2026 At the time Newman was infected in North Carolina with Lyme, the disease was believed to be largely limited to the Northeast. — Erika Edwards, NBC news, 13 Aug. 2026 People are thought to get infected by inhaling the amoeba from windblown dust or by getting contaminated soil or water in a wound. — Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 12 Aug. 2026 The jalapeño recall also impacts Taylor Fresh Foods, who also recalled shredded lettuce carrying cyclospora, a gastrointestinal illness that also causes diarrhea to those infected. — Joseph Hernandez august 11, Kansas City Star, 11 Aug. 2026 About one in five people infected with West Nile virus developed flu-like symptoms, including fever, headaches, body aches and nausea. — Daniel Lempres, Sacbee.com, 11 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for infected

Verb

Patterson was accused of pretending to eat the same portion, and of feigning illness in an elaborate ruse to suggest she’d also been poisoned.

— Hilary Whiteman, CNN Money, 20 Aug. 2026
For decades, many speculated Taylor had been poisoned with arsenic, as his sudden death happened during an intense political crisis over slavery.

— Sophie Clausen, PEOPLE, 17 Aug. 2026

Definition of poisoned

Verb

Frozen fruit bars recalled Some Outshine Fruit Bars distributed nationwide have been voluntarily recalled because they may be contaminated with glass, according to a report from the FDA.

— Melina Khan, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2026
Cyclosporiasis is caused by a parasite that spreads through food and water contaminated with infected human feces.

— Claire Cameron, Scientific American, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of contaminated

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infect

infected

infecting

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“Infected.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/infected. Accessed 28 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of infected

verb

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