Library / English Dictionary

ANTHRAX

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected form: anthraces   

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A disease of humans that is not communicable; caused by infection with Bacillus anthracis followed by septicemia

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Hypernyms ("anthrax" is a kind of...):

disease (an impairment of health or a condition of abnormal functioning)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "anthrax"):

cutaneous anthrax; malignant pustule (a form of anthrax infection that begins as papule that becomes a vesicle and breaks with a discharge of toxins; symptoms of septicemia are severe with vomiting and high fever and profuse sweating; the infection is often fatal)

anthrax pneumonia; inhalation anthrax; pulmonary anthrax; ragpicker's disease; ragsorter's disease; woolsorter's disease; woolsorter's pneumonia (a form of anthrax infection acquired by inhalation of dust containing Bacillus anthracis; initial symptoms (chill and cough and dyspnea and rapid pulse) are followed by extreme cardiovascular collapse)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A highly infectious animal disease (especially cattle and sheep); it can be transmitted to people

Synonyms:

anthrax; splenic fever

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Hypernyms ("anthrax" is a kind of...):

zoonosis; zoonotic disease (an animal disease that can be transmitted to humans)

Credits

 Context examples: 

Anthrax is a disease caused by Bacillus anthracis, a germ that lives in soil.

(Anthrax, NIH: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)

But many people don't know they have anthrax until it is too late to treat.

(Anthrax, NIH: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)

Anthrax is rare.

(Anthrax, NIH: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)