dengue

noun

den·​gue ˈdeŋ-gē 

-ˌgā

: an acute infectious disease caused by a flavivirus (serotypes of Orthoflavivirus denguei), transmitted by aedes mosquitoes, and typically characterized by headache, severe joint pain, and a rash but may progress into a more serious illness marked by hemorrhagic symptoms

called also breakbone fever, dengue fever

Examples of dengue in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Debug’s request to use Wolbachia against a particular species of mosquito called Aedes aegypti — responsible for spreading diseases like dengue, yellow fever, and the Zika virus — is currently pending approval from the EPA, and is open to public comment until June 5. —Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 4 June 2026

Huang said Dallas is also enhancing its mosquito surveillance by monitoring not only for West Nile virus, which is endemic in the region, but also diseases such as dengue, chikungunya and Zika. —Annika Kim Constantino, CNBC, 4 June 2026

There are more than 3,500 different species of mosquito, but just Aedes aegypti transmits most cases of dengue, Zika, yellow fever, and chikungunya. —Bay City News, Mercury News, 4 June 2026

According to the Florida Department of Health’s most recent surveillance, one case of dengue was reported the week of May 24-30. —Amaia Gavica, Miami Herald, 4 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

American Spanish

First Known Use

1828, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

dengue

noun

den·​gue ˈdeŋ-gē  -ˌgā 

: an acute infectious disease that is caused by a flavivirus (serotypes of Orthoflavivirus denguei) transmitted by mosquitos of the genus Aedes and that is typically characterized by headache, severe joint pain, and a rash but may progress to the more severe dengue hemorrhagic fever

called also breakbone fever, dandy fever, dengue fever