Hypertext Webster Gateway: "syphilis"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Syphilis \Syph"i*lis\, n. [NL., fr. Syphilus, the name of a
shepherd in the Latin poem of Fracastoro, ``Syphilus, sive
Morbus Gallicus,'' which was published in 1530; Gr. ? hog,
swine + ? dear, loving. The term was introduced into nosology
by Sauvages.] (Med.)
The pox, or venereal disease; a chronic, specific, infectious
disease, usually communicated by sexual intercourse or by
hereditary transmission, and occurring in three stages known
as primary, secondary, and tertiary syphilis. See under
{Primary}, {Secondary}, and {Tertiary}.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
syphilis
n : a common venereal disease caused by the Treponema pallidum
spirochete; symptoms change through progressive stages;
can be congenital (transmitted through the placenta)
[syn: {syph}, {pox}]
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