curse 1 of 2

noun

ˈkərs How to pronounce curse (audio)
Definition of cursenext
1
as in condemnation
a prayer that harm will come to someone uttered a curse upon his persecutor from the scaffold

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2
as in swear
a disrespectful or indecent word or expression started muttering curses after hitting his thumb with the hammer

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3
as in bane
a source of harm or misfortune intolerance of personal differences is a curse of humanity

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curse

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to imprecate
to ask a divine power to send harm or evil upon I curse the guy who had the idea of having annoying salespeople call up innocent people to sell them things they don't want

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2
as in to plague
to cause persistent suffering to misfortunes and problems seem to have cursed everyone ever associated with that house

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3
as in to swear
to use offensive or indecent language you'll have to put a quarter in the jar every time you curse

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4
as in to blame
to use profane or obscene language at or about cursed him for showing up late, when he knew how important it was to be on time

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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 curse
Noun
Along with the town’s hard-drinking fisherman Wyck (Root), and the town hall staff of Patricia (O’Flynn), Rosemary (Dickey) and Dale (Hiller), Loftis tries to ignore a centuries-old island curse while attracting tourists to the island. — Antonia Blyth, Deadline, 16 Aug. 2026 In other cases Hoodoo was used to counter the threat of curses, as in the practice of suspending bottles from a tree to trap any malevolent spirits or witches traveling in spirit form. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Aug. 2026
Verb
Vietnamese labor unions were in the thick of it, both blessed by the largess and cursed by the exploitative system. — Matthew Wills, JSTOR Daily, 24 Aug. 2026 By 2004, that barren spell had stretched to a staggering 86 years, reinforcing the idea that Boston was somehow cursed - a notion that had become part of baseball folklore. — Emile Nuh, CNN Money, 23 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for curse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for curse
  1. condemnation
  2. swear
  3. bane
  4. condemn
  5. plague
  6. blame
  7. censure
  8. language
Noun
  • El-Sayed put distance between himself and Piker on Wednesday following intraparty condemnation of Piker’s comments on American Jews.
    — Nicholas Wu, semafor.com, 27 Aug. 2026
  • If an agreement was not reached outside of court, the city filed for condemnation.
    — Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of condemnation
Noun
  • The pinky swear proved binding, as Nelson wrote the screenplay within six weeks.
    — William Earl, Variety, 15 July 2026
  • Why fill with swears a show that might otherwise have been appointment viewing for the whole family?
    — Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 31 May 2026
Definition of swear
Noun
  • In This Article Weeds are the bane of any gardener’s existence.
    — Alexandra Kelly, Martha Stewart, 22 Aug. 2026
  • The arrangement was aimed at minimizing the number and cost of change orders, which are the bane of construction projects.
    — Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of bane
Verb
  • There, the tyrannical February has condemned its inhabitants to eternal winter and forbids them from flying, while a masked resistance movement known as The Solution fights to restore light and freedom.
    — Alexandra Patterson, Variety, 3 Sep. 2026
  • His government has consistently avoided criticizing Morocco, but Sánchez condemned comments from two Moroccan ministers questioning the sovereignty of Ceuta and Melilla, another Spain's other territory in North Africa.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of condemn
Verb
  • The research team identified opportunities to improve the atomic layer etching (ALE) approach, which offers significant advantages over the conventional methods but was plagued by difficulties for practical use.
    — Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Troubles from the start The groundbreaking attraction, which Six Flags has sunk millions of dollars into, was plagued with problems from the outset.
    — Blake Ellis, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of plague
Verb
  • Heaping credit onto Espada is dangerous, but so is blaming him for every game that goes awry.
    — Chandler Rome, New York Times, 31 Aug. 2026
  • That war ended in a humiliating defeat by an enemy regarded as much weaker, and many tsarist officials blamed the outcome on Japanese spies and saboteurs.
    — Andrei Soldatov, Foreign Affairs, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of blame
Noun
  • Edwards stood in the well of the House as the censure resolution was read.
    — Kevin Freking, Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Following the vote, Speaker Mike Johnson asked Edwards to present himself in the well of the chamber as the censure resolution was read aloud.
    — John Parkinson, ABC News, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of censure
Noun
  • From a consideration of apoptosis—the orderly elimination of damaged or unnecessary cells—Solé moves on to failing machines, eroded memories, vanished languages, brittle digital archives, and more.
    — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
  • High-needs students — defined as those receiving free or reduced price meals, English language learners and students with disabilities — also performed about 10 points below the overall student body in each category.
    — Theo Peck-Suzuki, Hartford Courant, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of language

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curs
curse
cursed
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Cite this Entry

“Curse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/curse. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on curse

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about curse

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