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endemic - 10 dictionary results

en⋅dem⋅ic

  [en-dem-ik]
Use endemic in a Sentence
–adjective Also, en⋅dem⋅i⋅cal.
1. natural to or characteristic of a specific people or place; native; indigenous: endemic folkways; countries where high unemployment is endemic.
2. belonging exclusively or confined to a particular place: a fever endemic to the tropics.
–noun
3. an endemic disease.
Origin:
1655–65; < NL endēmicus, equiv. to Gk éndēm(os) endemic (en- en- 2 + dêm(os) people + -os adj. suffix) + L -icus -ic

Related forms:
en⋅dem⋅i⋅cal⋅ly, adverb
en⋅de⋅mism  [en-duh-miz-uhm] , en⋅de⋅mic⋅i⋅ty  [en-duh-mis-i-tee] , noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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en·dem·ic   (ěn-děm'ĭk)   
adj.  
  1. Prevalent in or peculiar to a particular locality, region, or people: diseases endemic to the tropics. See Synonyms at native.
  2. Ecology Native to or confined to a certain region.
n.   Ecology
An endemic plant or animal.

[From Greek endēmos, native, endemic : en-, in; see en-2 + dēmos, people; see dā- in Indo-European roots.]
en·dem'i·cal·ly adv., en·dem'ism n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Endemic

En*de"mic\, Endemical \En*de"mic*al\, a. [Gr. ?, ?; ? + ? the people: cf. F. end['e]mique.] (Med.) Peculiar to a district or particular locality, or class of persons; as, an endemic disease.

Note: An endemic disease is one which is constantly present to a greater or less degree in any place, as distinguished from an epidemic disease, which prevails widely at some one time, or periodically, and from a sporadic disease, of which a few instances occur now and then.

Endemic

En*dem"ic\, n. (Med.) An endemic disease.

Fear, which is an endemic latent in every human heart, sometimes rises into an epidemic. --J. B. Heard.

Endemic

En*dem"ic\, a. Belonging or native to a particular people or country; native as distinguished from introduced or naturalized; hence, regularly or ordinarily occurring in a given region; local; as, a plant endemic in Australia; -- often distinguished from exotic.

The traditions of folklore . . . from a kind of endemic symbolism. --F. W. H. Myers.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : endemic
Spanish: endémico,
German: heimisch,
Japanese: 風土性の
More Translations »

endemic 
1662, from Gk. endemos "native," from en- "in" + demos "people, district" (see demotic).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: 1en·dem·ic
Pronunciation: en-'dem-ik, in-
Function: adjective
: restricted or peculiar to a locality or region<endemic diseases> endemic species> —compare EPIDEMIC 1, SPORADIC —en·dem·i·cal·ly /-'dem-i-k(&-)lE/ adverb

Main Entry: 2endemic
Function: noun
1 : an endemic disease or an instance of its occurrence
2 : an endemic organism
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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endemic en·dem·ic (ěn-děm'ĭk)
adj.

  1. Prevalent in or restricted to a particular region, community, or group of people. Used of a disease.
  2. Enzootic.
en·dem'i·cal·ly adv.
en·dem'ism n.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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endemic   (ěn-děm'ĭk)  Pronunciation Key 
  1. Relating to a disease or pathogen that is found in or confined to a particular location, region, or people. Malaria, for example, is endemic to tropical regions. See also epidemic, pandemic.
  2. Native to a specific region or environment and not occurring naturally anywhere else. The giant sequoia is endemic to the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada. Compare alien, indigenous.

Our Living Language  : A disease that occurs regularly in a particular area, as malaria does in many tropical countries, is said to be endemic. The word endemic, built from the prefix en-, "in or within," and the Greek word demos, "people," means "within the people (of a region)." A disease that affects many more people than usual in a particular area or that spreads into regions in which it does not usually occur is said to be epidemic. This word, built from the prefix epi-, meaning "upon," and demos, means "upon the people." In order for a disease to become epidemic it must be highly contagious, that is, easily spread through a population. Influenza has been the cause of many epidemics throughout history. Epidemics of waterborne diseases such as cholera often occur after natural disasters such as earthquakes and severe storms that disrupt or destroy sanitation systems and supplies of fresh water.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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