bubonic plague

UK: /bjuːˌbɒnɪkˈpleɪg/

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

bubon′ic plague′, [Pathol.]

1. Pathology a serious, sometimes fatal, infection with the bacterial toxin Yersinia pestis, transmitted by fleas from infected rodents and characterized by high fever, weakness, and the formation of buboes, esp. in the groin and armpits. Cf. Black Death.

• 1885–90

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

bubonic plague noun

1. an acute infectious febrile disease characterized by chills, prostration, delirium, and formation of buboes: caused by the bite of a rat flea infected with the bacterium Yersinia pestis
   See also plague