coronavirus

noun

co·​ro·​na·​vi·​rus kə-ˈrō-nə-ˌvī-rəs 

plural coronaviruses

1

: any of a family (Coronaviridae) of large single-stranded RNA viruses that have a lipid envelope studded with club-shaped spike proteins, infect birds and many mammals including humans, and include the causative agents of MERS, SARS, and COVID-19

Coronaviruses can cause a variety of illnesses in animals, but in people coronaviruses cause one-third of common colds and sometimes respiratory infections in premature infants.

—Rob Stein

… in 2003 a previously unknown coronavirus caused an outbreak of SARS in humans.

—Ali Moh Zaki et al.

—abbreviation CoV, CV

2

: an illness caused by a coronavirus

especially : covid-19

Italy has seen the most coronavirus cases in Europe, with more than 2,000 people ill and 76 deaths associated with COVID-19.

—Dayton (Ohio) Daily News

—abbreviation CV

Examples of coronavirus in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In 2020, Parton donated $1 million to Vanderbilt University, which helped fund coronavirus research and Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine. — Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 26 Aug. 2026

Thousands of employers are keeping tabs on the whereabouts, productivity and communications of workers with technology that was adopted widely during the coronavirus pandemic. — Cathy Bussewitz, Fortune, 23 Aug. 2026

Concentrations of the coronavirus detected in wastewater have doubled each month since June. — Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 22 Aug. 2026

Such beliefs continue in the 21st century, with certain factions making unproven claims about urine’s purported antiviral actions against the COVID-19–causing coronavirus. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 19 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

corona + virus, later taken as New Latin

Note: The word was introduced by a group of virologists as a short article "Coronaviruses" in the "News and Views" section of Nature (vol. 220, no. 5168, November 16, 1968, p. 650): "… avian infectious bronchitis virus has a characteristic electron microscopic appearance resembling, but distinct from, that of myxoviruses. Particles are more or less rounded in profile … there is also a characteristic 'fringe' of projections 200 Å long, which are rounded or petal shaped, rather than sharp or pointed, as in the myxoviruses. This appearance, recalling the solar corona, is shared by mouse hepatitis virus … . In the opinion of the eight virologists these viruses are members of a previously unrecognized group which they suggest should be called the coronaviruses, to recall the characteristic appearance by which these viruses are identified in the electron microscope."

First Known Use

1968, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing coronavirus

• coronavirus disease 2019

Rhymes for coronavirus

• adenovirus
• baculovirus
• enterovirus
• poliovirus
• antivirus
• herpesvirus
• parvovirus
• reovirus
• retrovirus
• rhinovirus
• rotavirus
• cytomegalovirus

Kids Definition

coronavirus

noun

co·​ro·​na·​vi·​rus kə-ˈrō-nə-ˌvī-rəs 

1

: a virus that infects birds and many mammals including humans

2

: an illness caused by a coronavirus

especially : covid-19

Medical Definition

coronavirus

noun

co·​ro·​na·​vi·​rus kə-ˈrō-nə-ˌvī-rəs 

1

: any of a family (Coronaviridae) of large, single-stranded, RNA viruses that have a lipid envelope studded with club-shaped spike proteins , infect birds and many mammals including humans, and include the causative agents of feline infectious peritonitis, COVID-19, MERS, and SARS

Coronaviruses are a large, diverse group of viruses that affect many animal species. A few of these viruses cause a wide range of respiratory illness in humans, typically with "common cold" symptoms.

—The Journal of the American Medical Association

—abbreviation CoV, CV

2

: an illness caused by a coronavirus

especially : covid-19

—abbreviation CV