virulent

[ vir-yuh-luhnt, vir-uh- ]

adjective

1. actively poisonous; intensely noxious:

   a virulent insect bite.

   Synonyms: venomous

   Antonyms: harmless

2. Medicine/Medical. highly infective; malignant or deadly.
3. Bacteriology. causing clinical symptoms.
4. violently or spitefully hostile.
5. intensely bitter, spiteful, or malicious:

   a virulent attack.

   Synonyms: acerbic, vicious

virulent

/ ˈvɪrʊlənt /

adjective

1. 1. (of a microorganism) extremely infective
   2. (of a disease) having a rapid course and violent effect
2. extremely poisonous, injurious, etc
3. extremely bitter, hostile, etc

Derived Forms

• ˈvirulently, adverb

Other Words From

• viru·lent·ly adverb
• hyper·viru·lent adjective
• hyper·viru·lent·ly adverb
• non·viru·lent adjective
• non·viru·lent·ly adverb
• super·viru·lent adjective
• super·viru·lent·ly adverb
• un·viru·lent adjective
• un·viru·lent·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of virulent¹

1350–1400; Middle English verulent < Latin vīrulentus, equivalent to vīr ( us ) poison ( virus ) + -ulentus -ulent

Word History and Origins

Origin of virulent¹

C14: from Latin vīrulentus full of poison, from vīrus poison; see virus

Example Sentences

However, for malaria, this is not possible because the virulent proteins of the parasites that infect mice are very different from their human counterparts.

From Science Daily

They’re “a particularly virulent, violent form of white preservationists,” he said.

From Salon

But as adrenaline-pounding as virulent misogyny is in the moment, in the longer term, it's just going to make men's problems much worse.

From Salon

That nuclear stick is pretty big indeed, capable since 1945 of keeping our most virulent adversaries, including Moscow, Beijing, Tehran and Pyongyang, from their most reckless ambitions.

From Los Angeles Times

The assaults have only become more virulent since Trump won the 2016 election with ample help from foreign and domestic disinformation campaigns.

From Salon

Related Words

• acrimonious
• bitter
• hateful
• malicious
• rancorous
• scathing
• vicious
• vitriolic