Lassa fever

noun

Las·​sa fever ˈla-sə- How to pronounce Lassa fever (audio)
: a disease especially of Africa that is caused by an arenavirus (species Lassa virus of the genus Arenavirus) and is characterized by a high fever, headaches, mouth ulcers, muscle aches, small hemorrhages under the skin, heart and kidney failure, and a high mortality rate

Examples of Lassa fever in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web That list also includes Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever; the Ebola and Marburg viruses; Lassa fever; coronaviruses SARS, MERS, and COVID-19; henipaviruses, and Rift Valley fever. Erin Prater, Fortune Well, 26 Apr. 2023 Autopsies have long been a source of breakthroughs in understanding new diseases, from HIV/AIDS and Ebola, to Lassa fever - and the medical community is counting on them to do the same for covid-19, the disease caused by coronavirus. Author: Ariana Eunjung Cha, Anchorage Daily News, 1 July 2020

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'Lassa fever.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Lassa, village in Nigeria

First Known Use

1970, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of Lassa fever was in 1970

Dictionary Entries Near Lassa fever

Cite this Entry

“Lassa fever.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Lassa%20fever. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Medical Definition

Lassa fever

noun
Las·​sa fever ˌlas-ə- How to pronounce Lassa fever (audio)
: a disease especially of Africa that is caused by the Lassa virus and is characterized by a high fever, headaches, mouth ulcers, muscle aches, small hemorrhages under the skin, heart and kidney failure, and a high mortality rate

More from Merriam-Webster on Lassa fever

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