pestilence
6 dictionary results for: Pestilence
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
pes·ti·lence 
[pes-tl-uhns] Pronunciation Key
[pes-tl-uhns] Pronunciation Key –noun
| 1. | a deadly or virulent epidemic disease. |
| 2. | bubonic plague. |
| 3. | something that is considered harmful, destructive, or evil. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| pes·ti·lence
(pěs'tə-ləns) Pronunciation Key
n.
|
(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
pestilence
pestilence
1303, from O.Fr. pestilence, from L. pestilentia "plague," noun of action from pestilentem (nom. pestilens) "infected, unwholesome, noxious," from pestis "deadly disease, plague."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| pestilence | |
noun | |
| 1. | a serious (sometimes fatal) infection of rodents caused by Yersinia pestis and accidentally transmitted to humans by the bite of a flea that has bitten an infected animal [syn: plague] |
| 2. | any epidemic disease with a high death rate [syn: plague] |
| 3. | a pernicious and malign influence that is hard to get rid of; "racism is a pestilence at the heart of the nation"; "according to him, I was the canker in their midst" |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
American Heritage Stedman's Medical Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
pestilence pes·ti·lence (pěs'tə-ləns)
n.
- A usually fatal epidemic disease, especially bubonic plague.
- An epidemic of such a disease.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Pestilence
Pes"ti*lence\, n. [F. pestilence, L. pestilentia. See Pestilent.]1. Specifically, the disease known as the plague; hence, any contagious or infectious epidemic disease that is virulent and devastating. The pestilence That walketh in darkness. --Ps. xci. 6. 2. Fig.: That which is pestilent, noxious, or pernicious to the moral character of great numbers. I'll pour this pestilence into his ear. --Shak. Pestilence weed (Bot.), the butterbur coltsfoot (Petasites vulgaris), so called because formerly considered a remedy for the plague. --Dr. Prior.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Share This:
Copyright © 2008, Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.