virus

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See also Virus, and vírus

Contents

[edit] English

[edit] Etymology

From Latin virus (poison, slime, venom). First use in the computer context by David Gerrold in his 1972 book When HARLIE Was One.

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Noun

Singular
virus

Plural
viruses

virus (plural viruses)

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Wikipedia

  1. (archaic) Venom, as produced by a poisonous animal etc.
  2. (pathology, microbiology, virology) A submicroscopic infectious organism, now understood to be a non-cellular structure consisting of a core of DNA or RNA surrounded by a protein coat that requires a living cell to replicate — often causes disease in the host organism.
    • 2001, Leslie Iversen, Drugs: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford 2001, p. 64)
      Viruses are the smallest and most simplified forms of life.
  3. (computing) A computer virus.

[edit] Usage notes

  • The plural is often believed to be viri or even virii, but neither is correct Latin and both are neologistic folk etymology. The word has no plural in Latin as it is a mass noun, like oxygen or sunlight.
  • There is disagreement over whether a virus can be classed as a living organism.

[edit] Hyponyms

[edit] Related terms

[edit] Translations

[edit] See also


[edit] Bosnian

[edit] Noun

virus m (plural virusi)

  1. (medicine) virus (DNA/RNA causing disease)
  2. (computing) computer virus

[edit] Czech

[edit] Noun

virus m.

  1. virus

[edit] Declension

[edit] Related terms


[edit] Danish

[edit] Noun

virus c. n. (singular definite virussen or virusset, plural indefinite virus or virusser or vira, plural definite virussene or virusserne or viraene)

  1. virus

[edit] Dutch

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Noun

virus m. (plural virussen, diminutive virusje, diminutive plural virusjes)

  1. virus

[edit] Finnish

[edit] Pronunciation

  • IPA: [ˈʋirus]

[edit] Noun

virus (stem viru-*)

  1. virus

[edit] Declension


[edit] French

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Noun

virus m. (plural virus)

  1. virus

[edit] Galician

[edit] Noun

virus m. (plural virus)

  1. virus

[edit] Italian

[edit] Noun

virus m.

  1. virus

[edit] Latin

[edit] Etymology

Via rhotacism from Proto-Indo-European *wisos, *wīsos, *wiHsos. Cognates include Sanskrit विष (víṣa) and Ancient Greek ἰός (ios).

[edit] Noun

vīrus (genitive vīrī); n (uncountable), second declension

  1. venom
  2. poison

[edit] Inflection

Number Singular Plural
nominative vīrus 1
genitive vīrī
dative vīrō
accusative vīrus
ablative vīrō
vocative vīrus

1 virus is declined in the singular only.

[edit] Synonyms


[edit] Romanian

[edit] Noun

virus n. (plural virusuri)

  1. virus

[edit] Declension



[edit] Serbian

[edit] Noun

virus m. (plural virusi) (Cyrillic spelling вирус)

  1. (medicine) virus (DNA/RNA causing disease)
  2. (computing) computer virus

[edit] Spanish

[edit] Etymology

From Latin virus.

[edit] Noun

virus m. singular & plural

Singular
virus m.

Plural
virus m.

  1. virus, computer virus

[edit] Swedish

[edit] Noun

virus m.

  1. virus
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