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malarian

 - 7 dictionary results

ma⋅lar⋅i⋅a

[muh-lair-ee-uh]
–noun
1. Pathology. any of a group of diseases, usually intermittent or remittent, characterized by attacks of chills, fever, and sweating: formerly supposed to be due to swamp exhalations but now known to be caused by a parasitic protozoan, which is transferred to the human bloodstream by a mosquito of the genus Anopheles and which occupies and destroys red blood cells.
2. Archaic. unwholesome or poisonous air.

Origin:
1730–40; < It, contr. of mala aria bad air


ma⋅lar⋅i⋅al, ma⋅lar⋅i⋅an, ma⋅lar⋅i⋅ous, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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ma·lar·i·a   (mə-lâr'ē-ə)   
n.  
  1. An infectious disease characterized by cycles of chills, fever, and sweating, caused by a protozoan of the genus Plasmodium in red blood cells, which is transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected female anopheles mosquito.

  2. Archaic Bad or foul air; miasma.


[Italian, from mala aria, bad air : mala, feminine of malo, bad (from Latin malus; see mel-3 in Indo-European roots) + aria, air (from Latin āēr, from Greek; see wer-1 in Indo-European roots).]
ma·lar'i·al, ma·lar'i·an, ma·lar'i·ous adj.
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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Cultural Dictionary

malaria [(muh-lair-ee-uh)]

An infectious disease caused by a parasite that is transmitted by the bite of an infected mosquito. Persons suffering from malaria experience periodic episodes of chills and fever.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

malaria 
1740, from It. mal'aria, from mala aria, lit. "bad air," from mala "bad" (fem. of malo, from L. malus) + aria "air." Probably first used by It. physician Francisco Torti (1658-1741). The mosquito-borne disease was once thought to have been caused by foul air in marshy districts. Replaced native ague.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: ma·lar·ia
Pronunciation: m&-'ler-E-&
Function: noun
1 : an acute or chronic disease caused by the presence ofsporozoan parasites of the genus Plasmodium in the red blood cells, transmitted from an infected to an uninfected individual by the bite of anopheline mosquitoes, and characterized by periodicattacks of chills and fever that coincide with mass destruction of blood cells and the release of toxic substances by the parasite at the end of each reproductive cycle <malaria remains thegreatest single cause of debilitation and death throughout the world —Journal of the American Medical Association> —see FALCIPARUM MALARIA, VIVAX MALARIA
2 : any of various diseases of birds and mammals that are more or less similar to malaria of human beings and are caused by blood protozoans
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

malaria ma·lar·i·a (mə-lâr'ē-ə)
n.
An infectious disease characterized by cycles of chills, fever, and sweating, caused by the parasitic infection of red blood cells by a protozoan of the genus Plasmodium, which is transmitted by the bite of an infected female anopheles mosquito. Also called jungle fever, paludism, swamp fever.


ma·lar'i·al or ma·lar'i·an or ma·lar'i·ous adj.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Science Dictionary
malaria   (mə-lâr'ē-ə)  Pronunciation Key 
An infectious disease of tropical areas caused by the parasitic infection of red blood cells by a protozoan of the genus Plasmodium, which is transmitted by the bite of an infected female mosquito. Malaria is characterized by recurrent episodes of chills, fever, sweating, and anemia and is endemic in Africa, Central America, and much of Southern Asia and northern South America.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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