urticaria

noun ur·ti·car·ia \ ˌər-tə-ˈker-ē-ə \

|Updated on: 6 Jul 2018

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of urticaria

: hives

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urticarial

play \ˌər-tə-ˈker-ē-əl\ adjective

urticaria was our Word of the Day on 01/30/2015. Hear the podcast!

Recent Examples of urticaria from the Web

Finally — after months of Dan and wife Brittany Angerman, 28, trying to figure out what was wrong with their baby girl — Ivy was diagnosed with aquagenic urticaria on January 21.

— caitlin keating, PEOPLE.com, "Toddler with Severe Allergy to Water Can Rarely Leave House: 'It Hurts to See Her Hurting'," 11 June 2018
The condition is real, and it's called aquagenic urticaria.

— scott berson, charlotteobserver, "Little girl who is allergic to water can't even cry without getting blisters, mom says | Charlotte Observer," 2 May 2018
Researchers are still unsure why aquagenic urticaria develops.

— scott berson, charlotteobserver, "Little girl who is allergic to water can't even cry without getting blisters, mom says | Charlotte Observer," 2 May 2018
Her doctor says Ivy suffered from aquagenic urticaria, a condition that affects fewer than 100 people in the U.S. Her baby sister is luckily not shown any signs of it.

— natalie dreier, ajc, "Parents, doctor say girl allergic to water," 1 May 2018
Scientists at the Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center have noted that the condition seems to occur sporadically in people with no family history of aquagenic urticaria.

— maria clark, NOLA.com, "Minnesota toddler develops rare allergy to water: report," 5 Mar. 2018
There are fewer than 100 people in the world who have been diagnosed with aquagenic urticaria.

— janissa delzo, Newsweek, "Rare and Mysterious Condition Makes Child Allergic to Water," 23 Feb. 2018
Without further ado, read on to learn more about urticaria (the fancy medical term for hives) and their causes from the very experts who treat them for a living.

— kaleigh fasanella, Allure, "6 Under-the-Radar Causes of Hives," 26 Sep. 2017

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

Did You Know?

Hives can be caused by a number of things. It can be a reaction to the piece of food you ate, the new medication you took, or irritants in the air you breathe, among other causes. Urticaria was named in the 18th century for its resemblance to the rash caused by nettle, a plant of the genus Urtica. That genus name reflects the Latin word for "nettle" and is also related to the Latin verb urere, meaning "to burn." (It's easy to see the connection here if you know that many species of nettle have stinging hairs that irritate the skin.)