zoonosis

noun zoo·no·sis \ zō-ˈä-nə-səs , ˌzō-ə-ˈnō-səs \

Definition of zoonosis

plural zoonoses play \zō-ˈä-nə-ˌsēz, ˌzō-ə-ˈnō-ˌsēz\

: an infection or disease that is transmissible from animals to humans under natural condtions; also : an infection or disease that is transmissible between animals and humans

bidirectional zoonosis

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zoonotic

play \ˌzō-ə-ˈnä-tik\ adjective

Recent Examples of zoonosis from the Web

Known for his work on preventing zoonoses—diseases spread from wildlife to humans—

— National Geographic, "The World Has a Chance to Make the Wild Animal Trade More Humane," 26 Feb. 2016
Most emerging infectious diseases are zoonoses, diseases that originate in animals, and some may have the potential to trigger massive epidemics.

— kai kupferschmidt, Science | AAAS, "Bats really do harbor more dangerous viruses than other species," 21 June 2017
Dozens of such zoonoses—diseases that can jump from animals to humans—are carried by exotic pets.

— National Geographic, "The Dark Side of Trendy Animal Photos," 22 Feb. 2016

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