listeriosis

noun

lis·​te·​ri·​o·​sis li-ˌstir-ē-ˈō-səs 

plural listerioses li-ˌstir-ē-ˈō-ˌsēz 

: a serious encephalitic disease of a wide variety of animals that is caused by a bacterium (Listeria monocytogenes) and that in animals is often fatal but in humans is usually not fatal

Examples of listeriosis in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The process of pasteurization, heating milk to a specific temperature for a set period of time, kills harmful organisms responsible for diseases such as listeriosis, typhoid fever, tuberculosis, diphtheria, Q fever, and brucellosis, according to the FDA. —Gma Team, ABC News, 27 Feb. 2026

There are two types of listeriosis. —Rebecca Cohen, NBC news, 26 Feb. 2026

In 1985, more than three dozen deaths in California — including stillbirths and fetuses lost to miscarriage – were blamed on listeriosis from soft cheeses produced by an Artesia company named Jalisco Mexican Products. —Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 14 Feb. 2026

The agency also highlighted that people over 65, those who are pregnant and immunocompromised people are especially at risk from listeriosis, which can result in a fatal infection. —Sabrina Weiss, PEOPLE, 13 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from Listeria, from Joseph Lister

First Known Use

1941, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for listeriosis

• amyloidosis
• anaplasmosis
• anastomosis
• aponeurosis
• apotheosis
• aspergillosis
• blastomycosis
• coccidiosis
• cryptococcosis
• cysticercosis
• endocytosis
• exocytosis

Medical Definition

listeriosis

noun

lis·​te·​ri·​o·​sis (ˌ)lis-ˌtir-ē-ˈō-səs 

variants also listerellosis

ˌlis-tə-rə-ˈlō-səs 

plural listerioses also listerelloses -ˌsēz 

: a serious disease of animals and humans that is caused by a bacterium of the genus Listeria (L. monocytogenes), that in animals causes severe encephalitis accompanied by disordered movements and is often fatal, that is contracted by humans especially from contaminated food (as processed meats or unpasteurized milk or cheese), that in otherwise healthy people typically takes the form of a mild flu-like illness or has no noticeable symptoms, that in neonates, the elderly, and the immunocompromised often causes serious sometimes fatal illness with symptoms including meningitis and sepsis, and that in pregnant women usually causes only mild illness in the mother but often results in miscarriage, stillbirth, or premature birth see circling disease