CANKER Synonyms: 133 Similar and Opposite Words

canker 1 of 2

verb

Definition of canker

as in to poison

to lower in character, dignity, or quality such shameless ambulance chasing cankers the legal profession

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canker

2 of 2

noun

as in rot

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Example Sentences

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 canker

Noun

Recognize bacterial canker by the dead branches covered by sap drippings. — Calvin Finch, San Antonio Express-News, 13 Feb. 2026 This damages the trunk and leaves an ugly, elongated canker that invites insects and stresses the tree, leading to stunted growth, sparse foliage, and stem dieback. — Luke Miller, Better Homes & Gardens, 11 Jan. 2026 Bacterial plant diseases include speck (a winter-surviving infection that attacks tomatoes), canker (which damages fruit trees including those producing apples and peaches), and blight (which rots melons, cucumbers, pumpkins, squash, peppers, tomatoes, eggplants, beans, and more). — New Atlas, 10 Jan. 2026 Even the most superb body begins to diminish in a person’s early 30s, thanks to the onset of sarcopenia, which sounds like a canker but means the incremental decline of muscle mass. — Sally Jenkins, The Atlantic, 18 Dec. 2025 See All Example Sentences for canker

Recent Examples of Synonyms for canker

Verb

What researchers uncovered through lab testing and surveillance footage, prosecutors said, was a plot by his fellow graduate student to intentionally poison him.

— Eduardo Cuevas, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2026
May says national polarization is poisoning the atmosphere locally.

— Stuart Miller, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of poison

Noun

When the plant roots encounter an area acidified by decaying plant matter—a chemical gradient distinct from that of animal matter—ABA builds up on the side facing the rot, encouraging growth in the other direction.

— Joanna Thompson, Scientific American, 17 Oct. 2026
And to manage context rot, feeding your agents only the context required for their current step may not be enough.

— Klaudia Zaika, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of rot

Verb

Rousseau argued that societies were happiest before agriculture and metal production corrupted them.

— Saar Shahar, The Conversation, 12 Oct. 2026
Documentarian Alex Gibney is no stranger to dissections of corrupting power — from his feature dives into Enron, Elizabeth Holmes and Scientology.

— Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of corrupt

Noun

But the eleventh-hour blitz of No On 3 ads that Keep Florida Clean funded, warning of the greed of Big Weed, inflamed voters’ private worries of societal decay.

— Christopher Spata, Miami Herald, 17 Oct. 2026
The commercial benchmark, by comparison, showed continuous performance decay during testing.

— Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of decay

Verb

With so few ancient samples of dodo DNA surviving—and that which does exist having degraded over the centuries—the analytic and number-crunching power of AI is just what’s needed to fill in the genetic blanks.

— Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 14 Oct. 2026
The partnership aims to keep the platform connected when military operations disrupt or degrade individual network links.

— Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of degrade

Noun

Is Meredith’s arc going to be tied to this new patient (Martin Martinez) who is in the foster care system and potentially has cancer?

— Max Gao, Variety, 16 Oct. 2026
However, the systems remain experimental, and the protein binders have not been demonstrated as cancer treatments.

— Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of cancer

Verb

In the 1990s, plans to demolish the deteriorating site and replace it with an underground car park sparked fierce opposition from local residents and traders, who successfully campaigned to save it.

— Alessia Armenise, Condé Nast Traveler, 12 Oct. 2026
How much longer the current cycle can continue may depend on market breadth, which has deteriorated.

— Sarah Min, CNBC, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of deteriorate

Noun

The Yolo County parents of a 7-day-old infant found living in squalor in a tent under an overpass have pleaded not guilty to the child endangerment charges against them, records show.

— Fedor Zarkhin, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2026
Bryant was charged in February 2025 with first-degree child abuse after investigators found that her children — at the time ages 12, 13, and 15 — had been living alone for at least four years in a townhouse on Lydia Lane, trapped in squalor.

— Andrea May Sahouri, Freep.com, 1 Sep. 2026

Definition of squalor

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canisters

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cankered

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“Canker.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/canker. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of canker

verb

noun

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