pox

English

Etymology

From Middle English pokkes, plural of the ancestor of pock (which see).

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /pɑks/
• Rhymes: -ɒks
• Homophone: pocks

Noun

pox (countable and uncountable, plural poxes)

1. A disease characterized by purulent skin eruptions that may leave pockmarks.
2. Syphilis.
3. (figuratively) A curse.
   • c. 1605, William Shakespeare, All's Well That Ends Well, act IV, scene 3

     A pox on him, he's a cat still.

Derived terms

Derived terms

• chickenpox
• cowpox
• poxy

• great-pox
• smallpox

Translations

A disease characterized by purulent skin eruptions that may leave pockmarks

• Catalan: buba f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 痘 (zh)

• Finnish: rokko (fi)

• Persian: آبله‎ (fa) (âbele)
• Russian: о́спа (ru) f (óspa)
• Serbo-Croatian: boginje (sh) pl

syphilis — see syphilis

Verb

pox (third-person singular simple present poxes, present participle poxing, simple past and past participle poxed)

1. (transitive, dated) To infect with the pox, or syphilis.

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Coatlán Mixe

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /poʃ/

Noun

pox

1. guava