51Թ

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plague

[ pleyg ]

noun

  1. an epidemic disease that causes high mortality; pestilence.
  2. an infectious, epidemic disease caused by a bacterium, Yersinia pestis, characterized by fever, chills, and prostration, transmitted to humans from rats by means of the bites of fleas. Compare bubonic plague, pneumonic plague, septicemic plague.
  3. any widespread affliction, calamity, or evil, especially one regarded as a direct punishment by God:

    a plague of war and desolation.

  4. any cause of trouble, annoyance, or vexation:

    Uninvited guests are a plague.

    Synonyms: , ,



verb (used with object)

plagued, plaguing.
  1. to trouble, annoy, or torment in any manner:

    The question of his future plagues him with doubt.

  2. to annoy, bother, or pester:

    Ants plagued the picnickers.

    Synonyms: , , , , , , , ,

  3. to smite with a plague, pestilence, death, etc.; scourge:

    those whom the gods had plagued.

  4. to infect with a plague; cause an epidemic in or among:

    diseases that still plague the natives of Ethiopia.

  5. to afflict with any evil:

    He was plagued by allergies all his life.

plague

/ ɪɡ /

noun

  1. any widespread and usually highly contagious disease with a high fatality rate
  2. an infectious disease of rodents, esp rats, transmitted to man by the bite of the rat flea ( Xenopsylla cheopis )
  3. something that afflicts or harasses
  4. informal.
    an annoyance or nuisance
  5. a pestilence, affliction, or calamity on a large scale, esp when regarded as sent by God
  6. archaic.
    used to express annoyance, disgust, etc

    a plague on you

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. to afflict or harass
  2. to bring down a plague upon
  3. informal.
    to annoy
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

plague

/ /

  1. Any of various highly infectious, usually fatal epidemic diseases.
  2. An often fatal disease caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, transmitted to humans usually by fleas that have bitten infected rats or other rodents.
  3. Bubonic plague , the most common type, is characterized by the tender, swollen lymph nodes called buboes, fever, clotting abnormalities of the blood, and tissue necrosis. An epidemic of bubonic plague in fourteenth-century Europe and Asia was known as the Black Death.

plague

  1. A highly contagious disease , such as bubonic plague , that spreads quickly throughout a population and causes widespread sickness and death.
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Notes

The term is also used to refer to widespread outbreaks of many kinds, such as a “plague of locusts.”
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Derived Forms

  • ˈܱ, noun
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Other 51Թ Forms

  • gܱ noun
  • t·ܱ noun adjective
  • ܲ·ܱ adjective
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51Թ History and Origins

Origin of plague1

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English plage, from Latin 岵a “stripe, wound,” Late Latin: ‼پԳ”
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51Թ History and Origins

Origin of plague1

C14: from Late Latin 岵a pestilence, from Latin: a blow; related to Greek ŧŧ a stroke, Latin plangere to strike
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Idioms and Phrases

see avoid like the plague .
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Synonym Study

See bother.
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

“Lazarus” arrives in the wake of “Common Side Effects,” another series casting the pharmaceutical industry as its own plague on the human condition.

From

As America’s plague of school shootings continues unabated, a steady stream of movies has cropped up in response to the ongoing tragedy.

From

Many struggle to pay the higher fees rather than sending their children to government schools, which are often free but plagued by poorly trained teachers and frequent strikes.

From

Niger has been plagued by jihadist attacks for many years - one of the issues junta leaders cited when staging their coup.

From

And if you go, is the employee at checkout yawning because of fatigue or the bubonic plague?

From

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Related 51Թs

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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