pestilence
Any epidemic disease that is highly contagious, infectious, virulent and devastatingAny epidemic disease that is highly contagious, infectious, virulent and devastating.
» Tom doesn't know the difference between pastry and pestilence.
Meaning
2 senses(countable, uncountable)Any epidemic disease that is highly contagious, infectious, virulent and devastating.
Pest, Seuche
морmor, чума́čumá
any epidemic disease with a high death rate
(archaic, countable, uncountable)Anything harmful to morals or public order.
Examples
2 sentencesTom doesn't know the difference between pastry and pestilence.
Many squandered their money on charms and amulets, thinking that would ward off the pestilence.
Translations
8 languagesBy meaning 1
By meaning 1
Origin
From Middle English, from Old French, from Latin pestilentia (“plague”), from pestilens (“From Middle English, from Old French, from Latin pestilentia (“plague”), from pestilens (“infected, unwholesome, noxious”); equivalent to pestilent + -ence.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
plural: pestilences| Singular | pestilence |
|---|---|
| Plural | pestilences |
regular
Synonyms
5 synonyms- a pernicious and malign influence that is hard to get rid of:canker
- any epidemic disease with a high death rate:plaguepest
- a serious (sometimes fatal) infection of rodents caused by Yersinia pestis and accidentally transmitted to humans by the bite of a flea that has bitten an infected animal:plaguepestpestis
Word family
5 related wordsLessons for this word
1 lessons- A1Countable and uncountable nouns — Because it can be uncountable