typhoid fever

noun

1. an acute infectious disease characterized by high fever, rose-coloured spots on the chest or abdomen, abdominal pain, and occasionally intestinal bleeding. It is caused by the bacillus Salmonella typhosa ingested with food or water Also calledenteric fever

typhoid fever

/ tī′foid′ /

1. A life-threatening infectious disease caused by the bacterium Salmonella typhi and transmitted through contaminated food and water. It is characterized by high fever, intestinal bleeding, diarrhea, and skin rash.

typhoid fever

1. An acute and highly contagious disease transmitted by food or water contaminated with a kind of bacterium . The disease, which is often fatal, is characterized by high fever, pain in the abdomen , and bleeding in the intestines .

Word History and Origins

Origin of typhoid fever¹

C19: from typhus + -oid ; so called because the symptoms resemble those of typhus