SUBLETHAL Synonyms: 63 Similar and Opposite Words

sublethal

adjective

Definition of sublethal

as in toxic

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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 sublethal Documenting often-invisible, sublethal effects in wild animals that are definitively linked to plastic itself has remained elusive. — Matthew Savoca, The Conversation, 21 Mar. 2023 The third is that this dosage was sublethal, just to send a message. — Ellen Barry and Ceylan Yeginsu, New York Times, 13 Mar. 2018 There’s a growing body of evidence, too, that neonicotinoids may have sublethal effects, says Dennis vanEngelsdorp, a bee researcher at the University of Maryland who was not involved in the new study. — Lindsey Konkel, National Geographic, 26 July 2016

Recent Examples of Synonyms for sublethal

Adjective

As many have observed, and Republicans are somewhat ineffectually seeking to highlight, the post-Barack Obama Democratic Party has come to consist of little more than a toxic mixture of socialism, antisemitism and wokeness.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 5 Oct. 2026
Several years later, DeLay was the force driving Clinton’s impeachment and was simply too toxic to seek the speaker’s chair.

— Michael Tarm, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of toxic

Adjective

Sepsis can lead to a number of different complications, and Woodhouse developed infective endocarditis — an infection of the inner lining of the heart chambers and valves.

— Adam England, PEOPLE, 14 Sep. 2026
The team confirmed that those eggs developed into infective third-stage larvae.

— Jay Kakade August 05, Refractor, 5 Aug. 2026

Definition of infective

Adjective

The virus is spread through the air when an infected person coughs, sneezes and breathes and can remain virulent for up to two hours.

— Lucia Cheng, Des Moines Register, 24 Aug. 2026
The isotopes that make up radiopharmaceuticals are just as virulent as the beam radiation patients have begrudgingly tolerated for decades.

— Allison DeAngelis, STAT, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of virulent

Adjective

With the throne disengaged from governance, petitions and reports from officials piled up unread, crucial state posts went unfilled, and the imperial bureaucracy splintered amid poisonous factional infighting.

— Carl Minzner, Foreign Affairs, 5 Oct. 2026
With this potential even more poisonous investments in the bloated and indebted Paramount behemoth, there’s even more reason to reject it.

— Abigail Disney, New York Daily News, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of poisonous

Adjective

Epidemiologists consider that eight-day window the infectious period.

— Rachel Carlson, NPR, 30 Sep. 2026
The findings serve as a reminder that infectious agents cause cancer, says Anna Giuliano, founding director of the Center for Immunization and Infection Research in Cancer at the Moffitt Cancer Center.

— Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 29 Sep. 2026

Definition of infectious

Adjective

The backlash against this perfectly reasonable post demonstrates the deleterious effect of mass immigration on our democratic system.

— Matthew Ablon, CBS News, 14 Sep. 2026
During this time, bogs, marshes, and other wetlands, historically seen as disease-ridden and deleterious to human health, were reevaluated by scientists and conservationists as valuable wildlife habitats.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 24 July 2026

Definition of deleterious

Adjective

While the baits are not harmful to pets, eating several may cause mild stomach upset.

— Dan Raby, CBS News, 7 Oct. 2026
The film primarily follows Frances Haugen (Mikey Madison), a Facebook employee in the company’s civic integrity team, the group tasked with making sure Facebook acts responsibly and avoids the harmful impacts of its product.

— Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of harmful

Adjective

Obscured Releasing has acquired North American distribution rights to The Drug in Our Pocket, a documentary by Anne Sundberg about the pernicious effects on young people of constant smartphone use.

— Matthew Carey, Deadline, 2 Oct. 2026
But the specific way markets are taking root—with much of the population too poor to participate meaningfully, with no rule of law, and with the gap between winners and losers steadily widening—is pernicious for the country’s future.

— Will Freeman, Foreign Affairs, 17 Sep. 2026

Definition of pernicious

Browse Nearby Words

sublet

sublethal

sublets

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“Sublethal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sublethal. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of sublethal

adjective

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