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measles Definition

mea·sles (mē′zəlz)

noun

    1. an acute, infectious, communicable disease caused by a paramyxovirus and characterized by small, red spots on the skin, high fever, nasal discharge, etc. and occurring most frequently in childhood; rubeola
    2. any of various similar but milder diseases; esp., rubella (German measles)
  2. a disease of cattle and hogs, caused by tapeworm larvae in the flesh

Etymology: ME maseles, pl. of masel, measle, spot (? infl. by mesel, leper < OFr < L misellus, wretch < miser, wretched), akin to OHG māsa, a spot, Ger masern, measles

tapeworm larvae

measles Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • catch: However, you can catch measles at any age.
  • contract: However, Mr Sharp is unsympathetic, blaming the Briggs children for his son contracting German measles.
  • get: You can have a vaccination to stop you getting measles.
  • have: Dr. Waring said the child had measles which was the main factor in the case.
  • develop: For example, unvaccinated children risk neurological problems if they develop measles or whooping cough.
  • prevent: Can you prevent measles: Measles can be prevented by a highly effective vaccine.

Noun used with modifier

  • antigen: One common local cause of confusion is the use of the single antigen measles vaccine in France.

Adjective modifier

  • german: Q - I became partially deaf as a result of the german measles at the age of eleven.
  • German: Children with German measles should be kept away from pregnant women.
  • combined: It organized trials of poliovirus and measle vaccines and more recently the very successful combined measles, mumps and rubella ( MMR ) vaccine.
  • e.g.: Treating childhood illnesses with homeopathy ( e.g. measles, mumps, chickenpox, impetigo, molluscum and whooping cough ).
  • single: There is no source of single licensed measles or mumps vaccines in this country.
  • acute: No child has died of acute measles in the UK for more than a decade.

Modifies a noun

  • mumps: MMR protects your child and your family against measles mumps and rubella.
  • vaccine: Some European countries make use of single measles vaccine in addition to MMR.
  • epidemic: In the last measles epidemic in the United States in 1991, there were 55,000 cases.
  • virus: The group reported finding measles virus in samples of bowel disease tissue.
  • vaccination: The country is France which gives a single measles vaccination only in the event of a serious measles crisis.
  • outbreak: The West coast of Scotland has already had a measles outbreak with 5000 cases of which 130 were admitted to a fever unit.

Preposition: in

  • child: When possible we used gamma globulin to abort measles in pre-school children.
measles Quotes

Love is like the measles; we all have to go through it.

—Jerome,Jerome K(lapka)

Love iz like the meazles; we kant have it bad but onst, and the latter in life we hav it the tuffer it goes with us.

—Billings,Josh pseudonym of  Henry Wheeler Shaw

Love'slikethemeaslesöalltheworsewhenitcomeslate in life.

—Jerrold, Douglas William