hantavirus

noun

han·​ta·​vi·​rus ˈhän-tə-ˌvī-rəs  ˈhən-  ˈhan- 

: any of a family (Hantaviridae and especially genus Orthohantavirus) of bunyaviruses transmitted especially by rodent feces and urine and including viruses causing serious pulmonary disease or hemorrhagic fevers marked by renal necrosis

Examples of hantavirus in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Andes hantavirus seems to be most contagious right around the time patients begin to develop symptoms, and the Americans under monitoring show no signs of illness. —Brenda Goodman, CNN Money, 29 May 2026

Found in Argentina and Chile, the Andes strain was responsible for the recent hantavirus outbreak that killed three people who had been aboard the Dutch luxury cruise ship MV Hondius. —Cnn.com Wire Service, Mercury News, 29 May 2026

The number of cases of hantavirus linked to a cruise ship at the center of an outbreak has increased to 13, the head of the World Health Organization said on Wednesday. —Reuters, NBC news, 27 May 2026

The South African Department of Health says tests performed on infected passengers of the the MV Hondius confirm the Andes virus, one of the deadliest hantavirus diseases with a roughly 40% case fatality rate, is what infected passengers onboard the ship. —Mary Whitfill Roeloffs, Forbes.com, 26 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from hanta- (from Hantaan, river in South Korea near where rodents carrying the virus were collected 1974–78) + virus

First Known Use

1984, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for hantavirus

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

Medical Definition

hantavirus

noun

han·​ta·​vi·​rus ˈhan-tə-ˌvī-rəs  ˈhən-  ˈhän- 

: any of a family (Hantaviridae and especially genus Orthohantavirus) of bunyaviruses that infect specific rodents as their natural hosts and that include some forms causing hantavirus pulmonary syndrome and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome in humans following exposure to the virus in airborne particles of rodent urine, feces, or saliva or directly by the bite of a rodent