epidemic

English

Alternative forms

• epidemick (obsolete)

Etymology

From French épidémique, from épidémie, from Latin epidemia, from Ancient Greek ἐπιδήμιος (epidḗmios), from ἐπί (epí, “upon”) + δῆμος (dêmos, “people”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌɛpɪˈdɛmɪk/

Noun

epidemic (plural epidemics)

1. A widespread disease that affects many individuals in a population.
2. (epidemiology) An occurrence of a disease or disorder in a population at a frequency higher than that expected in a given time period.

Antonyms

• endemic

Translations

widespread disease

• Afrikaans: epidemie
• Albanian: epidemi (sq) f
• Arabic: وَبَاء (ar) m (wabāʔ)
• Armenian: համաճարակ (hy) (hamačarak)
• Azerbaijani: epidemiya
• Belarusian: эпідэ́мія f (epidémija)
• Bulgarian: епиде́мия (bg) f (epidémija)
• Catalan: epidèmia f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 流行病 (zh) (liúxíngbìng), 瘟疫 (zh) (wēnyì)

• Czech: epidemie (cs) f
• Danish: epidemi (da) c
• Dutch: epidemie (nl)
• Estonian: epideemia (et)
• Finnish: kulkutauti (fi), epidemia (fi)
• French: épidémie (fr)
• Galician: andazo (gl) m, andaxe f
• Georgian: ეპიდემია (eṗidemia)
• German: Epidemie (de) f, Seuche (de) f
• Greek: επιδημία (el) f (epidimía)

  Ancient: ἐπιδήμιος (epidḗmios)

• Hebrew: מַגֵּפָה (he) f (magefá)
• Hindi: महामारी (hi) f (mahāmārī)
• Hungarian: járvány (hu), népbetegség (hu)
• Icelandic: faraldur (is) m, farsótt (is) f
• Irish: eipidéim f
• Japanese: 伝染病 (ja) (densenbyō), 疫病 (ja) (ekibyō), 流行病 (ja) (りゅうこうびょう, ryūkōbyō)
• Korean: 유행병 (ko) (yuhaengbyeong)
• Kyrgyz: эпидемия (ky) (epidemiya)
• Latin: luēs f
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Latvian: epidēmija f
• Lithuanian: epidemija f
• Macedonian: епидемија f (epidemija)
• Maori: urutā, mate urutā
• Navajo: naałniih
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: farsott (no) m or f, epidemi m

  Nynorsk: epidemi m

• Persian: همه‌گیر (hame-gir), مرگامرگی (margāmargī)
• Polish: epidemia (pl) f
• Portuguese: epidemia (pt) f
• Romanian: epidemie (ro) f, epidemii f pl
• Russian: эпиде́мия (ru) f (epidémija)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: по̏ша̄ст f, епидѐмија f, редња

  Roman: pȍšāst f, epidèmija (sh) f, rednja (sh) f

• Slovak: epidémia (sk) f
• Slovene: epidemija (sl) f
• Sotho: sewa
• Spanish: epidemia (es) f
• Swedish: epidemi (sv) c, farsot (sv) c
• Tagalog: salot (tl), epidemya
• Tajik: эпидемия (epidemiya)
• Thai: โรคระบาด (rôok-rá-bàat)
• Turkish: salgın (tr)
• Ukrainian: епіде́мія f (epidémija)
• Vietnamese: dịch (vi)
• Westrobothnian: ,
• Yiddish: עפּידעמיע f (epidemye)

occurrence of such disease

• Arabic: وَبَاء (ar) m (wabāʔ)
• Catalan: epidèmia f
• Czech: epidemie (cs) f
• Dutch: epidemie (nl)
• Finnish: epidemia (fi)
• French: épidémie (fr)
• Greek: επιδημία (el) f (epidimía)
• Hungarian: járvány (hu)
• Irish: eipidéim f
• Japanese: エピデミック (epidemikku)
• Latin: luēs f
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: epidemi m

  Nynorsk: epidemi m

• Polish: epidemia (pl) f
• Portuguese: epidemia (pt) f
• Russian: эпиде́мия (ru) f (epidémija)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: епидѐмија f

  Roman: epidèmija (sh) f

• Slovak: epidémia (sk)
• Spanish: epidemia (es) f
• Swedish: epidemi (sv) c

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Esperanto: ^{(please verify)} epidemio
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} epidemia (it) f, ^{(please verify)} contagio (it) m

Adjective

epidemic (comparative more epidemic, superlative most epidemic)

1. Like or having to do with an epidemic; widespread

   Epidemic hysteria occurred upon the incumbent’s reelection.

   • 1852, Annals of influenza or epidemic catarrhal fever in Great Britain, page 76:

     [In] May, there was, at London and in its neighbourhood, a disease very epidemic, though not fatal, which had some time before been very prevalent both in Italy and Germany.

   • 1986, Gerald F. Pyle, The Diffusion of Influenza: Patterns and Paradigms, →ISBN, page 123:

     The major reason for such an examination was to determine if any patterns uncovered seemed to be more epidemic than endemic.

   • 2003, James C. Howell, Preventing & Reducing Juvenile Delinquency: A Comprehensive Framework, SAGE Publications, →ISBN, page 19:

     This proportion increased about 5% from 1988 to 1992—hardly a change of epidemic proportions.

   • 2013, Frederick Allen, A Decent, Orderly Lynching: The Montana Vigilantes, page 8:

     This was the stagecoach holdup, and while these encounters were not as epidemic as we like to remember, nonetheless there were numerous bands of "road agents" who lay by the roadside in wait for passengers.

Synonyms

• common, ubiquitous; see also Thesaurus:widespread

Antonyms

• endemic

Translations

like an epidemic

• Catalan: epidèmic
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: ^{(please verify)} 流行性 (zh) (liúxíngxìng)

• Czech: epidemický
• Dutch: epidemisch (nl)
• Esperanto: epidemia (eo)
• Finnish: epideeminen (fi), kulkutaudinomainen
• French: épidémique (fr)
• German: epidemisch (de)
• Greek: επιδημικός (el) m (epidimikós)
• Hungarian: járványos (hu)
• Irish: eipidéimeach
• Italian: epidemico (it)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Japanese: 流行性 (ryūkōsei)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: epidemisk

  Nynorsk: epidemisk

• Polish: epidemiczny (pl)
• Portuguese: epidêmico
• Romanian: epidemic (ro) m
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: епидѐмӣјскӣ

  Roman: epidèmījskī (sh)

• Slovak: epidemický (sk)
• Spanish: epidémico (es)
• Yiddish: עפּידעמיש (epidemish)

Related terms

• pandemic
• epidemiology
• endemic

See also

• epizootic
• enzootic

Anagrams

• midpiece