fever

See also: Fever

English

Alternative forms

• feaver, fevre (obsolete, rare)

Etymology

From Middle English fever, fevere, from Old English fefer, fefor (“fever”) and Old French fievre (“fever”), from Latin febris (“a fever”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰegʷʰ- (“to burn”). Replaced native Old English hriþ (“fever”). Compare also Saterland Frisian Fiewer, German Fieber, Danish feber, Swedish feber.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈfiːvə/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈfivɚ/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iːvə(ɹ)
• Hyphenation: fe‧ver

Noun

fever (countable and uncountable, plural fevers)

2. (medicine) A higher than normal body temperature of a person (or, generally, a mammal), usually caused by disease.

   "I have a fever. I think I've the flu."

   • 2016 September 16, Hailey Middlebrook, “Should you really feed a cold and starve a fever?”, in CNN‎^[1]:

     Proper nutrition – and even more important, proper hydration – is crucial in preventing and recovering from both fevers and colds. […] As Abramson explained, when we are sick, whether we have a fever or not, our metabolic rates skyrocket, and our bodies need more calories to support that high metabolic rate.

3. (usually in combination with one or more preceding words) Any of various diseases.

   scarlet fever

4. A state of excitement or anxiety.
   • c. 1602, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Troylus and Cressida”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene ii]:

     an envious fever

   • 1996 March 15, Jonathan Mirsky, “Taiwan President visits islanders to bolster morale”, in The Times‎^[2], number 65,528, →ISSN, →OCLC, Overseas News, page 15, column 3:

     There is little doubt that while war fever has not gripped Taipei, its economic foundations are being shaken. The stock market rose yesterday, but only because the Government has pumped $1.5 billion (£1 billion) into it after $370 million was drained from banks, and stocks were sold by investors who are worried by the Chinese manoeuvres.

5. (neologism) A group of stingrays.
   • 2011, Julianne Schultz, editor, Griffith REVIEW 34: The Annual Fiction Edition:

     On the way back to the mainland the boat passed over a fever of stingrays, and the sight of them through the glass was enough to colour everything else, and outstrip it.

   • 2020, Lindsay Illich, “sea turtle”, in rile & heave (everything reminds me of you): Poems:

     They move like thoughts, like memory, like a Wes Anderson diorama of earthly delights: lionfish, an albacore, a fever of stingrays—and then like a wound, a sea turtle at eye level.

   • 2020, Sarah Elizabeth, Secrets of the Past: Ocean Academy Year 1:

     She threw up her hands in excitement and the ball of water flew right into the pathway of the fever of stingrays.

6. (in combination, slang, often derogatory) Sexual attraction towards a specific group of people.

   Asian fever

   clown fever

   white fever

   blue fever

Synonyms

• (higher than normal body temperature): high temperature, pyrexia (medical term), temperature
• (state of excitement): excitation, excitement, passion

Hyponyms

• abortus fever
• absorption fever
• acclimating fever
• Aden fever
• adynamic fever
• aestivoautumnal fever
• African Coast fever
• algid pernicious fever
• aphthous fever
• ardent fever
• arthropod-borne fever
• artificial fever
• aseptic fever
• Asian fever
• Assam fever
• Astrakhan fever
• ataxic fever
• autumn fever
• barrel fever
• Bay fever
• beaver fever
• benign tertian fever
• biduoterian fever
• biliary fever
• bilious fever
• black fever
• black fly fever
• blackwater fever
• blue fever
• bouquet fever
• boutonneuse fever
• bovine epizootic fever
• brain fever
• brassfounder's fever
• brass founder's fever
• Brazilian purpuric fever
• breakbone fever
• buck fever
• Bullis fever
• bullous fever
• Bunyamwera fever
• Burdwan fever
• Bwamba fever
• cabin fever
• cachectic fever
• cachexial fever
• camp fever
• cane-cutter fever
• cane-field fever
• canefield fever
• canicola fever
• Cape Horn fever
• Carrión's fever
• Carter's fever
• catarrhal fever
• cat-bite fever
• cat fever
• catheter fever
• cat-scratch fever
• central fever
• cerebro-spinal fever
• cerebrospinal fever
• Chagres fever
• channel fever
• Charcot's fever
• chikungunya fever
• childbed fever
• childbirth fever
• Choix fever
• complicate fever
• congestive fever
• Congolian red fever
• Congo red fever
• continued fever
• continuous fever
• cotton fever
• cotton-mill fever
• country fever
• Crimean fever
• Cyprus fever
• dance fever
• dandy fever
• date fever
• deer fly fever
• dehydration fever
• dengue fever
• desert fever
• diary fever
• digestive fever
• diphasic milk fever
• disfever
• dock fever
• double quotidian fever
• drug fever
• duck fever
• Dum Dum fever
• Dumdum fever
• dumdum fever
• Dutch type periodic fever
• East Coast fever
• Ebola fever
• Ebola virus fever
• elephantoid fever
• Elokomin fluke fever
• English fever
• enteric fever
• entericoid fever
• entrance fever
• ephemeral fever
• epimastical fever
• eruptive fever
• essential fever
• estivoautumnal fever
• exanthematous fever
• exsiccation fever
• falciparum fever
• familial Hibernian fever
• familial periodic fever
• famine fever
• farrowing fever
• fatigue fever
• field fever
• five-day fever
• flood fever
• fog fever
• food fever
• Fort Bragg fever
• foundryman's fever
• Gambian fever
• gaol fever
• gastric fever
• Gibraltar fever
• glandular fever
• gold fever
• grain fever
• green fever
• haematuric bilious fever
• haemoglobinuric fever
• haemorrhagic fever
• Hankow fever
• harvest fever
• Hasami fever
• Haverhill fever
• hay fever
• hectic fever
• hematuric bilious fever
• hemoglobinuric fever
• hemorrhagic fever
• hempen fever
• hepatic intermittent fever
• herpetic fever
• horse sickness fever
• hospital fever
• humidifier fever
• Ilheus fever
• inanition fever
• induced fever
• inflammatory fever
• intermittent fever
• inundation fever
• island fever
• Jaccoud's dissociated fever
• jail fever
• Japanese flood fever
• Japanese river fever
• jungle fever
• jungle yellow fever
• Junin fever
• Katayama fever
• Kedani fever
• Kenya fever
• Kew Gardens fever
• Kinkiang fever
• Korin fever
• Lábrea fever
• Lábrea's black fever
• land fever
• Lassa fever
• laurel fever
• Lazaret fever
• lechuguilla fever
• Lhasa fever
• Lombard fever
• Lone Star fever
• low grade fever
• lung fever
• malarial fever
• malignant tertian fever
• Malta fever
• Manchurian fever
• Marseilles fever
• marsh fever
• Mediterranean coast fever
• Mediterranean erythematous fever
• Mediterranean exanthematous fever
• Mediterranean fever
• Mediterranean spotted fever
• meningotyphoid fever
• metal fume fever
• Meuse fever
• Mexican fever
• Mianeh fever
• miliary fever
• milk fever
• mill fever
• Monday fever
• monoleptic fever
• Mossman fever
• mountain fever
• mud fever
• mumu fever
• Murchison-Pel-Ebstein fever
• Murchison-Sanderson fever
• nanukayami fever
• Neapolitan fever
• nervous fever
• nine mile fever
• nodal fever
• o'nyong-nyong fever
• Oropouche fever
• Oroya fever
• paludal fever
• papataci fever
• papatasi fever
• pappataci fever
• papular fever
• paratyphoid fever
• parenteric fever
• parrot fever
• parturient fever
• Pel-Ebstein fever
• periodic fever
• petechial fever
• pharyngoconjunctival fever
• phlebotomus fever
• pinta fever
• pituitous fever
• polka fever
• polyleptic fever
• polymer fume fever
• Pomona fever
• Pontiac fever
• Potomac fever
• Potomac horse fever
• pretibial fever
• prison fever
• prison fever typhus
• protein fever
• puerperal fever
• puking fever
• pukka fever
• purple fever
• putrid fever
• Pym fever
• Pym's fever
• pyogenic fever
• Q fever
• query fever
• rabbit fever
• ratbite fever
• rat-bite fever
• recrudescent typhus fever
• recurrent fever
• recurring fever
• red fever
• redwater fever
• relapsing fever
• remittent fever
• rheumatic fever
• Rhodesian fever
• rice-field fever
• Rock fever
• rock fever
• Roman fever
• rose fever
• Ross River fever
• rotanny fever
• run a fever
• sakushu fever
• Salinem fever
• salt fever
• sandfly fever
• sand-fly fever
• Santa Marta fever
• São Paulo fever
• scarlet fever
• Schamberg fever
• Schottmüller's fever
• secondary fever
• Sennetsu fever
• septic fever
• Shar Pei fever
• shin bone fever
• ship fever
• shipping fever
• shoddy fever
• Sindbis fever
• slime fever
• slow fever
• smelter's fever
• snail fever
• solar fever
• Songo fever
• spelter's fever
• spirillary fever
• spirillum fever
• splenic fever
• spotted fever
• spottled fever
• spring fever
• steroid fever
• sthenic fever
• stockyards fever
• stranger's fever
• streptobacillary fever
• summer fever
• sun fever
• suppurative fever
• surgical fever
• swamp fever
• swine fever
• symptomatic fever
• syphilitic fever
• Texas cattle fever
• Texas fever
• therapeutic fever
• thermic fever
• thirst fever
• three-day fever
• threshing fever
• tick-bite fever
• tick-borne fever
• tick fever
• Tobia fever
• tomato fever
• traumatic fever
• trench fever
• trypanosome fever
• tsutsugamushi fever
• typhoid fever
• typhus fever
• undifferentiated type fever
• undulant fever
• undulating fever
• upgrade fever
• urethral fever
• urinary fever
• urticarial fever
• uveoparotid fever
• valley fever
• verruga fever
• vivax fever
• war fever
• Wesselsbron fever
• West African fever
• West African hemorrhagic fever
• West Nile fever
• Whitmore's fever
• winter fever
• Wolhynia fever
• womb fever
• worm fever
• wound fever
• yellow fever
• Zika fever
• zinc fume fever

Derived terms

some unsorted, may be hyponyms

• 7-day fever
• African swine fever virus
• antifever
• Arab fever
• baby fever
• Bieber fever
• Botany Bay fever
• bovine ephemeral fever
• bovine infectious petechial fever
• bovine malignant catarrhal fever
• bovine petechial fever
• brain fever
• brain-fever
• brain-fever bird
• buck fever
• Bulam fever
• camp fever
• cat scratch fever
• cedar fever
• Charcot intermittent fever
• Charcot's intermittent fever
• drain fever
• enfever
• familial Mediterranean fever
• feverable
• fever-bark
• fever-blister
• fever bush
• fever-chart
• fever clinic
• fever coat
• fever-cooling
• fever dream
• fevered
• feveret
• fever-fly
• fever fog
• fever-heat
• fever-hectic
• feverish
• feverless
• feverlike
• fever-lurdan
• fever-lurden
• fever-lurgan
• fever-lurk
• feverly
• fever-nut
• feverous
• fever pitch
• fever-pitched
• fever-powder
• fever-ridden
• feverroot
• fever-sick
• feversome
• fever-sore
• fever swamp
• fever-swamp
• fever tea
• fever-trap
• fever-tree
• fever-twig
• fever-weakened
• fever-weed
• feverweed
• fever-wood
• feverwort
• fevery
• gaol-fever
• gate fever
• go fever
• gold fever
• hay-fever
• hay fever
• hayfever
• hay feverite
• hog fever
• hog-fever
• hospital fever
• I have a fever
• Indian fever
• jail fever
• Japanese fever
• jungle fever
• Karelian fever
• Katayama's fever
• ladies' fever
• lazaret fever
• Liszt fever
• low-grade fever
• lunar hay fever
• maculated fever
• malignant catarrhal fever
• maple fever
• Marburg fever
• Marburg hemorrhagic fever
• marsh fever
• Miana fever
• milk fever
• miniature scarlet fever
• monkey fever
• Ohara's fever
• pageant fever
• pencil fever
• Persian relapsing fever
• Pfeiffer's glandular fever
• pink-fever
• prison fever
• pseudofever
• putrid fever
• quintan fever
• rash fever
• Rhodesian redwater fever
• Rift Valley fever
• Rocky Mountain fever
• Rocky Mountain spotted fever
• rose fever
• San Joaquin fever
• San Joaquin Valley fever
• severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome
• ship-fever
• ship fever
• Spanish fever
• stage fever
• summit fever
• sun-fever
• swine fever
• terai fever
• thunder fever
• tramp fever
• white fever
• white line fever

Related terms

• feed a cold, starve a fever
• fever ague
• fever and ague
• fever blister
• fever bush
• fever grass
• fever lent
• fever of unknown origin
• fever pitch
• fever powder
• fever ring
• Fever River
• fever root
• fever sore
• fever therapy
• fever thermometer
• fever treatment
• fever tree
• fever twig
• Foshay-Mollaret cat-scratch fever syndrome

Related terms

• febrile
• fervent
• fervid
• fervor

Translations

higher than normal body temperature

• Afrikaans: koors
• Albanian: ethe (sq) f
• Amharic: ትኩሳት (təkusat)
• Arabic: حُمَّة f (ḥumma), حُمَّى f (ḥummā)

  Egyptian Arabic: سخنية f (suxuneyya)

  Hijazi Arabic: حرارة f (ḥarāra)

  Moroccan Arabic: سخانة f (sḵāna)

• Armenian: տենդ (hy) (tend), տաքություն (hy) (takʻutʻyun), ջերմություն (hy) (ǰermutʻyun), կրակ (hy) (krak) (figuratively)
• Aromanian: heavrã f
• Assamese: জ্বৰ (zor)
• Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܚܲܡܚܲܡܬܵܐ f (ḥamḥamtā)
• Asturian: fiebre f
• Azerbaijani: qızdırma
• Bashkir: биҙгәк (biźgək)
• Basque: sukar
• Belarusian: тэмперату́ра (be) f (tempjeratúra), гара́чка f (haráčka), жар m (žar), ліхама́нка f (lixamánka)
• Bengali: জ্বর (bn) (jor)
• Berber:

  Tashelhit: ⵜⴰⵡⵍⴰ f (tawla)

• Bikol Central: kalentura (bcl)
• Bulgarian: температу́ра (bg) f (temperatúra), тре́ска (bg) f (tréska)
• Burmese: အဖျား (my) (a.hpya:)
• Catalan: febre (ca) f
• Cebuano: hilanat, kalentura
• Chakma: 𑄎𑄧𑄢𑄴 (jar)
• Chamicuro: alijkwa'takochi
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 發熱 / 发热 (zh) (fārè), 發燒 / 发烧 (zh) (fāshāo) (verb; "to have a fever"), 熱病 / 热病 (zh) (rèbìng), 熱病 / 热病 (zh) (rèbìng)

• Classical Nahuatl: tletl
• Czech: horečka (cs) f, teplota (cs) f
• Danish: feber (da) c
• Dutch: verhoging (nl) f, koorts (nl) f
• Egyptian: (šmmt f)
• Esperanto: febro
• Estonian: palavik (et)
• Faroese: fepur m
• Finnish: kuume (fi)
• French: fièvre (fr) f
• Friulian: fiere f
• Galician: febre f, quentura f
• Georgian: სიცხე (sicxe), ციებ-ცხელება (cieb-cxeleba), ტემპერატურა (ṭemṗeraṭura)
• German: Fieber (de) n, Temperaturerhöhung f
• Gothic: 𐌱𐍂𐌹𐌽𐌽𐍉 f (brinnō), 𐌷𐌴𐌹𐍄𐍉 f (heitō)
• Greek: πυρετός (el) m (pyretós)

  Ancient: πυρετός m (puretós)

• Guaraní: akãnundu
• Gujarati: તાવ m (tāv)
• Hebrew: קַדַּחַת (he) f (kadákhat)
• Hiligaynon: hilanat
• Hindi: बुख़ार (hi) m (buxār), ज्वर (hi) m (jvar)
• Hungarian: (above 37.8°C or 100°F) láz (hu), (moderate fever, 36.8–37.8°C or 98.2–100°F) hőemelkedés (hu)
• Icelandic: hiti (is) m, hitasótt f
• Ilocano: gurigor
• Indonesian: demam (id)
• Ingrian: žaaru, varitauti
• Interlingua: febre
• Iquito: ípanaca
• Irish: fiabhras m
• Isnag: daxang
• Italian: febbre (it) f
• Japanese: 熱 (ja) (ねつ, netsu), 発熱 (ja) (はつねつ, hatsunetsu)
• Kapampangan: lagnat
• Kazakh: қызба (qyzba)
• Khmer: គ្រុន (km) (krun)
• Korean: 열(熱) (ko) (yeol), 열병(熱病) (ko) (yeolbyeong), 발열(發熱) (ko) (baryeol)
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: تا (ta)

  Northern Kurdish: ta (ku) f, tasar (ku) f, tagerm (ku) f

• Kyrgyz: калтыратма (ky) (kaltıratma), безгек (ky) (bezgek)
• Ladin: fiëura f
• Lao: ໄຂ້ (lo) (khai)
• Latin: febris (la) f
• Latvian: drudzis m
• Lithuanian: karščiavimas m
• Lü: ᦺᦃᧉ (ẋay²)
• Macedonian: треска f (treska)
• Malagasy: fanaviana (mg)
• Malay: demam (ms)
• Maore Comorian: ɓuhuo class 5/6
• Navajo: tahoniigááh
• Nepali: ज्वरो (jvaro)
• Norman: fièvre f
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: feber (no) m

• Occitan: fèbre (oc)
• Old English: hriþ
• Pali: pariḷāha m, jararoga m
• Pangasinan: puetang
• Pannonian Rusyn: горучка f (horučka)
• Pashto: تبه (ps) f (tᶕba)
• Persian:

  Iranian Persian: تَب (fa) (tab)

• Plautdietsch: Feeba n, Braunt n
• Polish: gorączka (pl) f, temperatura (pl) f
• Portuguese: febre (pt) f
• Punjabi: ਤਾਪ (pa) m (tāp), ਬੁਖ਼ਾਰ (pa) m (buxār)
• Quechua: rupha
• Romagnol: favarsena f
• Romanian: temperatură (ro) f, febră (ro) f
• Romansch: fevra f, feavra f, feivra f
• Russian: температу́ра (ru) f (temperatúra), лихора́дка (ru) f (lixorádka), горя́чка (ru) f (gorjáčka), жар (ru) m (žar)
• Sanskrit: ज्वर (sa) m (jvara)
• Sardinian: calentura f, callantura f
• Scottish Gaelic: fiabhras m
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: гро̀зница f

  Roman: gròznica (sh) f

• Sicilian: frevi (scn)
• Slovak: horúčka (sk) f
• Slovene: vročina (sl) f
• Somali: qandho (so)
• Sorbian:

  Lower Sorbian: zymnica f

• Southern Altai: туму (tumu), безгек (bezgek)
• Spanish: fiebre (es) f, calentura (es) f
• Sumerian: 𒌓 (/⁠ud⁠/)
• Swahili: (class 9/10) homa (sw), harara (sw)
• Swedish: feber (sv) c
• Tagalog: lagnat (tl)
• Tajik: таб (tab), табларза (tablarza)
• Tamil: காய்ச்சல் (ta) (kāyccal), ஜுரம் (ta) (juram), ஜ்வரம் (jvaram)
• Tatar: бизгәк (tt) (bizgäk)
• Tausug: hinglaw
• Telugu: జ్వరము (te) (jvaramu), వేకి (te) (vēki), పులకరము (te) (pulakaramu)
• Thai: ไข้ (th) (kâi)
• Tigrinya: ምርባጽ (mərbaṣ)
• Turkish: ateş (tr)
• Turkmen: gyzzyrma
• Ukrainian: гаря́чка f (harjáčka), лихома́нка f (lyxománka), температу́ра f (temperatúra) (colloquial), жар m (žar), пропáсниця f (propásnycja)
• Urdu: بُخار m (buxār), تاپ m (tāp)
• Uyghur: قىزىتما (qizitma)
• Uzbek: isitma (uz), bezgak (uz)
• Venetan: fevra f, féra
• Vietnamese: sốt (vi)
• Volapük: fif (vo)
• Walloon: five (wa) f
• Welsh: twymyn, achre m
• Yakan: lemmun
• Yiddish: פֿיבער m (fiber)

usually in combination: any of various diseases

• Afrikaans: koors
• Armenian: տենդ (hy) (tend)
• Bulgarian: тре́ска (bg) f (tréska)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 熱病 / 热病 (zh) (rèbìng), 病 (zh) (bìng)

• Finnish: -kuume (fi) (also -rokko, -nuha etc.)
• Greek: πυρετός (el) m (pyretós)
• Hebrew: קַדַּחַת (he) f (kadákhat)
• Hungarian: láz (hu)
• Navajo: tahoniigááh
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: feber (no) m

• Polish: gorączka (pl) f
• Russian: лихора́дка (ru) f (lixorádka), горя́чка (ru) f (gorjáčka)
• Scottish Gaelic: fiabhras m
• Sicilian: frevi (scn) f, malatìa (scn) f
• Swahili: homa (sw)
• Swedish: feber (sv) c
• Ukrainian: лихома́нка f (lyxománka), пропа́сниця (uk) f (propásnycja)

state of excitement (of a person or people)

• Afrikaans: koors
• Arabic: حَرَارَة (ar) f (ḥarāra)
• Armenian: հուզմունք (hy) (huzmunkʻ)
• Belarusian: ліхама́нка f (lixamánka)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 狂熱 / 狂热 (zh) (kuángrè), 熱 / 热 (zh) (rè)

• Czech: horečka (cs) f
• Finnish: kuume (fi), huuma (fi), vimma (fi)
• Greek: πυρετός (el) m (pyretós)
• Hungarian: izgalom (hu), izgatottság (hu)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: feber (no) m

• Pannonian Rusyn: горучка f (horučka)
• Polish: gorączka (pl) f, podniecenie (pl) n
• Russian: жар (ru) m (žar), лихора́дка (ru) f (lixorádka), горя́чка (ru) f (gorjáčka)
• Sicilian: liscìa (scn) f, lisìa f, scìḍḍicu m, scipitirìa f
• Swahili: homa (sw)
• Swedish: feber (sv) c
• Ukrainian: лихома́нка f (lyxománka)

See also

• hyperthermia

Verb

fever (third-person singular simple present fevers, present participle fevering, simple past and past participle fevered)

1. To put into a fever; to affect with fever.

   a fevered lip

   • c. 1606–1607 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Anthonie and Cleopatra”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene xiii]:

     the white hand of a lady fever thee

2. To become fevered.

References

• fever on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Further reading

• “fever”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “fever”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.

Anagrams

• fevre