chikungunya

noun chik·un·gun·ya \ ˌchi-kən-ˈgu̇n-yə , ˌchi-ku̇ŋ- \

Updated on: 2 Mar 2018

Definition of chikungunya

: a febrile disease that resembles dengue, occurs especially in parts of Africa, India, and southeastern Asia, and is caused by a togavirus (species Chikungunya virus of the genus Alphavirus) transmitted especially by aedes mosquitoes

Chikungunya is rarely fatal but can cause severe fevers, headaches, fatigue, nausea, and muscle and joint pains.
—Martin Enserink

Recent Examples of chikungunya from the Web

This drives down the population of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes that thrive in suburban and urban environments and can spread Zika, dengue fever and chikungunya.

— jennifer kay, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Miami releases bacteria-infected mosquitoes to help fight Zika virus," 8 Feb. 2018
Bharat, which makes vaccines against nine other diseases, including one approved by the W.H.O. for polio, is developing immunizations against Ebola, chikungunya, Zika and non-typhoid strains of Salmonella.

— donald g. mcneil jr., New York Times, "W.H.O. Approves a Safe, Inexpensive Typhoid Vaccine," 3 Jan. 2018
Stagnant water, mosquitoes, a history of dengue, of chikungunya, of Zika.

— mattathias schwartz, Daily Intelligencer, "Hurricane Maria Was a Natural Catastrophe. The Aftermath Is a Man-Made Disaster.," 22 Dec. 2017
The company has begun human testing of its mRNA drugs for cardiovascular disease and cancer, and for vaccines against the flu, Zika, and chikungunya viruses.

— kelly servick, Science | AAAS, "Can a multibillion-dollar biotech prove its RNA drugs are safe for a rare disease?," 19 Dec. 2017
Mosquitoes infected with it in laboratory studies are unable to transmit dengue, chikungunya, and yellow fever.

— National Geographic, "Can We Stop Mosquitoes From Infecting the World?," 1 Feb. 2016
Others can cause acute infections, such as chikungunya and Lassa fever.

— beth mole, Ars Technica, "Splashy study drips with questions after showing semen is viral safe-haven," 20 Sep. 2017
The idea was to use them to control a mosquito species that carries deadly tropical diseases – yellow fever, dengue, chikungunya, Zika.

— jsonline.com, "Mosquito battle gets political," 5 Oct. 2017
There are other pestilential concerns, among them dengue fever and chikungunya, a virus that swept through the Caribbean a few years ago.

— matthew segal, Los Angeles Magazine, "Buy All the Bug Spray: An Aggressive New Mosquito Is Buzzing Around," 13 Sep. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'chikungunya.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of chikungunya

borrowed from Kimakonde (Bantu language of the Makonde), alleged to mean "that which bends up"

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1954

See Words from the same year

Medical Dictionary

chikungunya

noun chik·un·gun·ya \ ˌchik-ən-ˈgu̇n-yə, ˌchik-u̇ŋ- \

medical Definition of chikungunya

: a febrile disease that resembles dengue, occurs especially in parts of Africa, India, and southeastern Asia, and is caused by a togavirus of the genus Alphavirus (species Chikungunya virus) transmitted by mosquitoes especially of the genus Aedes — called also chikungunya fever