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Definition of pestilence - 6 dictionary results

pes⋅ti⋅lence

  [pes-tl-uhns]
Use pestilence in a Sentence
–noun
1. a deadly or virulent epidemic disease.
2. bubonic plague.
3. something that is considered harmful, destructive, or evil.
Origin:
1275–1325; ME < MF < L pestilentia. See pestilent, -ence
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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pes·ti·lence   (pěs'tə-ləns)   
n.  
  1. A usually fatal epidemic disease, especially bubonic plague.
  2. A pernicious, evil influence or agent.
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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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.
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Language Translation for : pestilence
Spanish: pestilencia, peste,
German: die Seuche,
Japanese: ペスト
More Translations »

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
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Main Entry: pes·ti·lence
Pronunciation: 'pes-t&-l&n(t)s
Function: noun
: a contagious or infectious epidemic disease that is virulentand devastating; specifically : BUBONIC PLAGUE
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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pestilence pes·ti·lence (pěs'tə-ləns)
n.

  1. A usually fatal epidemic disease, especially bubonic plague.
  2. 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.
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