typhus
/ˈtaɪfəs/ noun
Forms typhuses
- noun (pathology) Any of several similar diseases, characterised by high recurrent fever, caused by Rickettsia bacteria. Not to be confused with typhoid fever.
Synonyms
camp fever gaol fever hospital fever jail fever prison fever putrid fever ship fever typhus fever
Etymology
From New Latin typhus, from Ancient Greek τῦφος (tûphos, “fever, stupor”), from τύφω (túphō, “to smoke”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰewbʰ-, extended form of *dʰew- (“scatter like dust”).
Webster’s 1913
- noun A contagious continued fever lasting from two to three weeks, attended with great prostration and cerebral disorder, and marked by a copious eruption of red spots upon the body. Also called jail fever, famine fever, putrid fever, spottled fever, etc. See Jail fever, under Jail.
Etymology [NL., fr. Gr. dh smoke.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “typhus”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details