tuberculosis

noun

tu·ber·cu·lo·sis tu̇-ˌbər-kyə-ˈlō-səs

tyu̇-

plural tuberculoses tu̇-ˌbər-kyə-ˈlō-ˌsēz

tyu̇-

: a highly variable communicable disease of humans and some other vertebrates that is caused by the tubercle bacillus and rarely in the U.S. by a related mycobacterium (Mycobacterium bovis), that affects especially the lungs but may spread to other areas (such as the kidney or spinal column), and that is characterized by fever, cough, difficulty in breathing, formation of tubercles, caseation, pleural effusions, and fibrosis

Examples of tuberculosis in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The diagnostics company Cepheid and the price of its tuberculosis test, GeneXpert. —

Lizzy Lawrence and Ed Silverman, STAT, 14 Sep. 2023 Some caught tuberculosis and died, and some recovered. —

John Freeman Gill, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2023 Parents and staff at the 445-student school learned about the tuberculosis case via email Friday, the county said. —

Fzarkhin, oregonlive, 18 Aug. 2023 The emaciated inmate in black shorts lay on a thin mat in Haiti’s most notorious prison, isolated from other prisoners at Port-au-Prince’s National Penitentiary because of drug-resistant tuberculosis. —

DÁnica Coto, ajc, 8 June 2023 American Indian historians said many of the children were likely to have died of malnutrition, abuse, tuberculosis or typhoid. —

Dana Hedgpeth and Emmanuel Martinez, Anchorage Daily News, 30 Aug. 2023 American Indian historians said many of the children likely died of malnutrition, abuse, tuberculosis or typhoid. —

Emmanuel Martinez, Washington Post, 30 Aug. 2023 For him, the moral accounting is clear: Millions of people die of diseases like tuberculosis, hepatitis C and COVID-19, and challenge trials could make a difference. —

Sara Harrison, Discover Magazine, 4 Aug. 2023 The practice was widespread by 1950, helping rein in deadly diseases, including tuberculosis, typhoid, and scarlet fever, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. —

Tony Leys, USA TODAY, 3 July 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tuberculosis.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

New Latin

First Known Use

1839, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of tuberculosis was in 1839

See more words from the same year

Dictionary Entries Near tuberculosis

tuberculosectorial

tuberculosis

tuberculostat

See More Nearby Entries

Cite this Entry

Style

“Tuberculosis.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tuberculosis. Accessed 25 Sep. 2023.

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Kids Definition

tuberculosis

noun

tu·ber·cu·lo·sis t(y)u̇-ˌbər-kyə-ˈlō-səs

: a disease of human beings and some other vertebrates caused by a bacterium and usually marked by wasting, fever, and formation of cheesy tubercles that in human beings occur mostly in the lungs

tuberculous

t(y)u̇-ˈbər-kyə-ləs

adjective

Medical Definition

tuberculosis

noun

tu·ber·cu·lo·sis t(y)u̇-ˌbər-kyə-ˈlō-səs

plural tuberculoses -ˌsēz

: a usually chronic highly variable disease that is caused by a bacterium of the genus Mycobacterium (M. tuberculosis) and rarely in the United States by a related mycobacterium (M. bovis), is usually communicated by inhalation of the airborne causative agent, affects especially the lungs but may spread to other areas (as the kidney or spinal column) from local lesions or by way of the lymph or blood vessels, and is characterized by fever, cough, difficulty in breathing, inflammatory infiltrations, formation of tubercles, caseation, pleural effusion, and fibrosis

called also TB