Synonyms of pestilent

pestilent

adjective

ˈpe-stə-lənt 

1

as in infectious

capable of being passed by physical contact from one person to another

proper hand washing will help prevent the spread of most pestilent diseases

Synonyms & Similar Words

• infectious
• infective
• communicable
• transmissible
• contagious
• catching
• transmittable

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• noninfectious
• noncommunicable

2

as in annoying

causing annoyance

pestilent reporters hounding him night and day

Synonyms & Similar Words

• annoying
• irritating
• frustrating
• disturbing
• pestilential
• pestiferous
• aggravating
• vexatious
• irksome
• maddening
• exasperating
• pesky
• vexing
• abrasive
• bothersome
• nettlesome
• painful
• plaguey
• rebarbative
• pesty
• nettling
• galling
• carking
• distractive
• rankling
• peeving
• chafing
• riling
• troublesome
• mischievous
• importunate
• stressful
• troubling
• biting
• displeasing
• infuriating
• burdensome
• disquieting
• offensive
• distressing
• tiresome
• discomforting
• upsetting
• enraging
• spiny
• importune
• worrisome
• trying
• thorny
• angering
• inconveniencing
• bratty
• brattish
• jarring
• grating
• jangling

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• delightful
• pleasing

3

as in lethal

likely to cause or capable of causing death

pestilent diseases such as bubonic plague and smallpox

Synonyms & Similar Words

• lethal
• deadly
• poisonous
• infectious
• fatal
• infective
• killer
• harmful
• toxic
• murderous
• baleful
• terminal
• dangerous
• mortal
• pernicious
• deathly
• destructive
• injurious
• baneful
• fell
• hazardous
• vital
• virulent
• deleterious
• noxious
• pestilential
• truculent
• serious
• perilous
• threatening
• risky
• ugly
• sublethal
• menacing
• sanguinary
• bloody
• unhealthy
• grievous
• parlous
• grave
• unsound
• internecine
• sanguine
• jeopardizing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• healthy
• healthful
• wholesome
• beneficial
• nonfatal
• salubrious
• salutary
• nonlethal
• restorative
• remedial
• corrective
• curative
• useful
• advantageous
• tonic
• safe
• nontoxic
• alleviative
• nonpoisonous

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of pestilent

But there were plenty of living famouses who were positively pestilent with Knicks fever. — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 14 June 2026

Long dismissed as pestilent rodents, beavers are now coming to be understood as autonomous biosphere managers that may be indispensable in the fight against the effects of climate chaos. — New Atlas, 28 Dec. 2025

Any dairy farmer can tell you that biting flies are a pestilent scourge for cattle herds, which is why one so often sees cows throwing their heads, stamping their feet, flicking their tails, and twitching their skin—desperately trying to shake off the nasty creatures. — ArsTechnica, 18 Sep. 2025

New York scored a big win in its comeback over the pestilent Houston Rockets on Monday. — Steven Louis Goldstein, The Athletic, 8 Feb. 2025

The high densities of brine flies — so dense shorelines can look like they are matted with tar — are an indication of a healthy lake, not a pestilent one. — Daniel Rothberg, Vox, 1 Oct. 2024

The former was true in the Pelicans' Game 4 as the eagle-wingspan need small forward Jones' and pestilent 6-foot Alvarado's varied physical traits held him to a playoff career-low four points and caused three turnovers. — Dana Scott, The Arizona Republic, 29 Apr. 2022

Island living looks like a privilege when the world is pestilent. — New York Times, 31 Oct. 2020

Herbicides also are available to contend with the pestilent plant. — cleveland, 30 June 2020