botulism

noun

bot·​u·​lism ˈbä-chə-ˌli-zəm 

: acute food poisoning that is caused by botulinum toxin produced in food by a bacterial clostridium (Clostridium botulinum) and is characterized by muscle weakness and paralysis, disturbances of vision, swallowing, and speech, and a high mortality rate

Examples of botulism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

News that ByHeart products could have been contaminated for years was distressing to Andi Galindo, whose 5-week-old daughter, Rowan, was hospitalized in December 2023 with infant botulism after drinking the formula. —CBS News, 11 Dec. 2025

An outbreak of infant botulism linked to recalled ByHeart baby formula has broadened as federal health officials say the company's products may have been contaminated since they were released in March 2022. —Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 11 Dec. 2025

Person to person transmission of botulism does not occur. —Amanda Greenwood, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Dec. 2025

Improper storage can increase the risk of botulism—a deadly form of food poisoning. —Katie Rosenhouse, Southern Living, 7 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1896, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for botulism

• autism
• fascism
• racism
• sikhism
• statism
• sufism
• thomism
• tourism
• tropism
• abolitionism
• aldosteronism
• americanism

Kids Definition

botulism

noun

bot·​u·​lism ˈbäch-ə-ˌliz-əm 

: poisoning caused by eating food containing a toxin made by a spore-forming bacterium

Medical Definition

botulism

noun

bot·​u·​lism ˈbäch-ə-ˌliz-əm 

: acute food poisoning caused by botulinum toxin produced in food by a bacterium of the genus Clostridium (C. botulinum) and characterized by muscle weakness and paralysis, disturbances of vision, swallowing, and speech, and a high mortality rate see botulinum toxin, limberneck