: any of several diseases of humans and domestic animals usually marked by severe gastrointestinal symptoms
especially
: an acute diarrheal disease caused by an enterotoxin produced by a comma-shaped gram-negative bacillus (Vibrio cholerae synonym V. comma) when it is present in large numbers in the proximal (see proximal sense 2) part of the human small intestine
Examples of cholera in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Malnourished children are also more vulnerable to waterborne diseases like cholera.
—
Sarah Ferguson, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Crucially, the war in eastern DRC also crippled the efforts to stem the spread of lethal diseases in a region already suffering from outbreaks of mpox, Ebola, cholera, malaria, and measles.
—Jean Kaseya, Time, 20 Aug. 2025
An ongoing civil war in Sudan has forced millions of people to flee their homes and move to camps, where a lack of water and sanitation infrastructure, along with heavy rains, are fueling a massive cholera outbreak.
—Andrea Tamayo, Scientific American, 15 Aug. 2025
Sudan cholera threatens thousands of lives A cholera outbreak in Sudan threatens the lives of tens of thousands of refugees already enduring one of the world’s gravest humanitarian crises.
—semafor.com, 11 Aug. 2025
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Sarah Ferguson, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Crucially, the war in eastern DRC also crippled the efforts to stem the spread of lethal diseases in a region already suffering from outbreaks of mpox, Ebola, cholera, malaria, and measles.
—Jean Kaseya, Time, 20 Aug. 2025
An ongoing civil war in Sudan has forced millions of people to flee their homes and move to camps, where a lack of water and sanitation infrastructure, along with heavy rains, are fueling a massive cholera outbreak.
—Andrea Tamayo, Scientific American, 15 Aug. 2025
Sudan cholera threatens thousands of lives A cholera outbreak in Sudan threatens the lives of tens of thousands of refugees already enduring one of the world’s gravest humanitarian crises.
—semafor.com, 11 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cholera
Cite this Entry
“Cholera.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cholera. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
cholera
noun
chol·era
ˈkäl-ə-rə 
: any of several diseases usually marked by severe vomiting and diarrhea
Medical Definition
cholera
noun
chol·era
ˈkäl-ə-rə
: any of several diseases of humans and domestic animals usually marked by severe gastrointestinal symptoms: as
a
: an acute diarrheal disease caused by an enterotoxin produced by various strains of a comma-shaped gram-negative bacterium of the genus Vibrio (V. cholerae synonym V. comma) when it is present in large numbers in the proximal part of the human small intestine see asiatic cholera
b
c
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