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PASSIVE IMMUNITY
Pronunciation (US): | (GB): |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
An impermanent form of acquired immunity in which antibodies against a disease are acquired naturally (as through the placenta to an unborn child) or artificially (as by injection of antiserum)
Classified under:
Nouns denoting stable states of affairs
Hypernyms ("passive immunity" is a kind of...):
acquired immunity (immunity to a particular disease that is not innate but has been acquired during life; immunity can be acquired by the development of antibodies after an attack of an infectious disease or by a pregnant mother passing antibodies through the placenta to a fetus or by vaccination)