dengue

noun den·gue \ ˈdeŋ-gē , -ˌgā \

Updated on: 20 Apr 2018

Definition of dengue

: an acute infectious disease caused by a flavivirus (species Dengue virus of the genus Flavivirus), transmitted by aedes mosquitoes, and characterized by headache, severe joint pain, and a rash — called also breakbone fever, dengue fever

Recent Examples of dengue from the Web

Yellow fever is a relative of the dengue and Zika viruses, but is far deadlier.

— NBC News, "Don't go to Brazil without a yellow fever vaccine, CDC warns," 16 Mar. 2018
It’s carried by mosquitoes — both the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes that spread dengue and Zika — and also by jungle-dwelling Haemagogus mosquitoes.

— NBC News, "Don't go to Brazil without a yellow fever vaccine, CDC warns," 16 Mar. 2018
The virus can be spread by the same mosquito that transmits other tropical diseases, including Zika and dengue.

— Washington Post, "Yellow fever shots urged for Brazil travelers amid outbreak," 16 Mar. 2018
This program targets Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which spread Zika, dengue, yellow fever and other viruses.

— maggie fox /, NBC News, "Miami's new mosquitoes carry sterility bug," 31 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 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
However, the study warned that letopsirosis was under reported or misdiagnosed as dengue.

— daniella silva, NBC News, "Puerto Ricans at Risk of Waterborne Disease Outbreaks in Wake of Hurricane Maria," 25 Oct. 2017
In 2009 and 2010, a battle with dengue underscored the need for new solutions.

— jsonline.com, "Mosquito battle gets political," 5 Oct. 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of dengue

American Spanish

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1828

See Words from the same year

Other Medicine Terms

analgesia, angina, diabetes, hepatitis, homeopathy, logorrhea, palliate, pandemic

Medical Dictionary

dengue

noun den·gue \ ˈdeŋ-gē , -ˌgā \

medical Definition of dengue

: an acute infectious disease that is characterized by headache, severe joint pain, and a rash and that is caused by a single-stranded RNA virus of the genus Flavivirus (species Dengue virus) transmitted by mosquitoes of the genus Aedes — called also breakbone fever, dandy fever, dengue fever