infected

adjective

in·​fect·​ed in-ˈfek-təd 

: having an infection : contaminated with an infective agent (such as a bacterium or virus)

an infected wound

Through a number of different means, these viruses persist at very low, hard-to-detect levels in infected cells.

—The Journal of the American Medical Association

She explains that leptospirosis bacteria are shed in the urine of infected animals.

—Tania Banak

The fungus produces as many as 1 million conidia per square centimeter of infected leaf surface.

—G. B. Lucas

Examples of infected in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Very few people ingest the bacteria or spores, but those who do typically get them from eating undercooked meat from an infected animal. —Hannah Kinzer, The Conversation, 25 Mar. 2026

Phishing, or a cyberattack, occurs when scammers impersonate legitimate organizations to trick recipients into clicking links, opening infected attachments, providing sensitive information and making financial payments. —Saleen Martin, USA Today, 20 Mar. 2026

Hackers can then use the army of infected computers to launch DDoS attacks, which involve summoning waves of internet traffic to overwhelm a website, app or IP address to try and take them offline. —Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 20 Mar. 2026

Set in the fictional city of Lionara, the series centers on a disillusioned soldier and a rogue medic forced into an unlikely alliance after an infected man develops abilities that could accelerate human evolution — or trigger its end. —Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 19 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

from past participle of infect

First Known Use

1534, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for infected

• affected
• bisected
• collected
• connected
• corrected
• defected
• deflected
• dejected
• detected
• directed
• dissected
• effected