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Definition of "fester" []

  • To generate pus; suppurate. (verb-intransitive)
  • To form an ulcer. (verb-intransitive)
  • To undergo decay; rot. (verb-intransitive)
  • To be or become an increasing source of irritation or poisoning; rankle: bitterness that festered and grew. (verb-intransitive)
  • To be subject to or exist in a condition of decline: allowed the once beautiful park to fester. (verb-intransitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "fester" in a sentence
  • "Killing everything or continuing to let this hesitancy fester is not going to get it done."
  • "Jeff, fester is not blaiming the reporters for crying, if I understand him."
  • "CNN into the source controversy using the word "fester""