poliomyelitis Hear it!

poliomyelitis definition

po·lio·my·eli·tis (pō′lē ō mī′ə līt′is)

noun

an acute infectious disease, esp. of children, caused by a viral inflammation of the gray matter of the spinal cord: it is accompanied by paralysis of various muscle groups that sometimes atrophy, often with resulting permanent deformities
also acute anterior poliomyelitis

Etymology: ModL < Gr polios, gray + myelitis

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Comments
Improve this definition.
Do you have more to add? Share your linguistic knowledge or observation.
/Register to save your comments.