blight
Withering plant disease
Blight is a plant disease that causes rapid withering and death, often destroying entire crops: potato blight, chestnut blight.
The word extends to anything that mars or destroys: urban blight describes neighborhood decay, and a person can be a blight on society.
To blight something is to ruin or spoil it: Scandal blighted his career.
Spore-bearing organism
- mildewFungus from dampness
- rotOrganic breakdown process
- rustIron oxide coating
- smutLewd content or soot
canker · lesion · scab · necrosis · chlorosis · wilt · infestation · pathogen
Cause of mass suffering
- plagueDeadly epidemic disease
- curseInvoked harm through words
- pestilenceFatal epidemic disease
- menaceSource of potential harm
epidemic · evil · misfortune · calamity · devastation · misery · torment · suffering
Organic breakdown process
- deteriorationProcess of declining quality
- decompositionBreakdown into simpler parts
- degradationDecline in condition
- disintegrationProcess of breaking apart
spoilage · fester · mold · putrefaction · disrepair · crumbling · corrosion · ruin
Severe food shortage
- droughtProlonged water scarcity
- starvationExtreme nutritional deprivation
- scarcityInsufficiency of something needed
- harvest failureWhen planted fields produce nothing
devastation · ruin · loss · shortage · dearth · barrenness · poor yield · crop loss
Impoverished urban district
- eyesoreOffensively unattractive thing
- derelictionAbandonment of duty
- abandonmentAct of leaving permanently
- condemnedOfficially declared unfit
rundown · dilapidated · neglected · inner-city · ghetto · brownfield · vacancy · demolition
Limp from dehydration
- shriveledContracted from moisture loss
- parchedExtremely dry or thirsty
- desiccationComplete removal of moisture
- sereDried and shriveled
withered · scorched · stunted · yellowing · drooping · dying · faded · sapless
Decline in ethical standards
- viceBad habit or deputy
- degradationDecline in condition
- depravityProfound moral corruption
- rottennessState of decay
taint · pollution · contamination · poison · cancer · influence · spread · infection
fungus
Spore-bearing organism
smut · canker · lesion · scab · necrosis · chlorosis · wilt · infestation · pathogen · spore
scourge
Cause of mass suffering
- plagueDeadly epidemic disease
- curseInvoked harm through words
- pestilenceFatal epidemic disease
menace · epidemic · evil · misfortune · calamity · devastation · misery · torment · suffering · plight
rot
Organic breakdown process
- deteriorationProcess of declining quality
- decompositionBreakdown into simpler parts
- degradationDecline in condition
disintegration · spoilage · fester · mold · putrefaction · disrepair · crumbling · corrosion · ruin · dereliction
famine
Severe food shortage
- droughtProlonged water scarcity
- starvationExtreme nutritional deprivation
- scarcityInsufficiency of something needed
harvest failure · devastation · ruin · loss · shortage · dearth · barrenness · poor yield · crop loss · food insecurity
slum
Impoverished urban district
- eyesoreOffensively unattractive thing
- derelictionAbandonment of duty
- abandonmentAct of leaving permanently
condemned · rundown · dilapidated · neglected · inner-city · ghetto · brownfield · vacancy · demolition · redevelopment
wilted
Limp from dehydration
- shriveledContracted from moisture loss
- parchedExtremely dry or thirsty
- desiccationComplete removal of moisture
sere · withered · scorched · stunted · yellowing · drooping · dying · faded · sapless · blasted
moral decay
Decline in ethical standards
- viceBad habit or deputy
- degradationDecline in condition
- depravityProfound moral corruption
rottenness · taint · pollution · contamination · poison · cancer · influence · spread · infection · malignancy
- fungal diseasescandidiasis, histoplasmosis, powdery mildew, downy mildew, jock itch
- tree problemscrack, dead wood, dieback, rot, wound
- crop diseaseswilt, blast, root rot, downy mildew, ergot
- Grain Diseasesergot, scab, powdery mildew, bunt, smut
- plant diseaseswilt, rot, canker, root rot, leaf spot
- tree diseasescanker, root rot, dieback, Dutch elm disease, leaf spot
blighthealth
Condition of body, mind
flourishing · vitality · thriving · vigor · bloom
blightbeautification
Act of enhancing appearance
enhancement · improvement · adornment · embellishment · ornament
- urban blightDeterioration of city areas
- potato blightFungal tuber infection
- crop blightDisease destroying cultivated plants
- fire blightBacterial infection of fruit trees
- tomato blightPlant disease affecting nightshades
- late blightPlant disease rotting tubers