pox

CEFRB2

/pɑks/

noun · verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    A disease that causes spots or blisters on the skin.

  2. 02

    noun

    Extra detail

    A curse.

Examples

  • Chicken pox is an itchy nuisance for kids.

  • The child has a case of chicken pox.

At a glance

Sits at B2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
2

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. A disease characterized by purulent skin eruptions that may leave pockmarks.

  2. A disease characterized by skin eruptions (especially purulent ones) that may leave pockmarks.

verb

Extra meaning

  1. To infect with the pox, or syphilis.

More examples

In context

  • a pox on all their houses

  • A pox on him, he's a cat still.

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The child developed a rash and fever, and the doctor diagnosed the blank.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

noun

From the plural of Middle English pocke. See also pock. The curse sense involves metonymy: wishing a literal pox upon someone is the original form of pox-relevant curse, and the word pox itself also came to mean curse.