plague

B2 Topic:Time

US /pleɪɡ/ See IPA manual

Freq #5194

Meanings

1

noun
A very serious infectious disease that spreads quickly and kills many people.

Great plagues, such as the bubonic plague, have killed millions throughout history.
2

noun
Something that causes great trouble, harm, or annoyance, often affecting many people.

A plague of grasshoppers destroyed the entire crop.
3

verb
To trouble or annoy someone continually over a long period.

He was plagued by doubts about his decision.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a very serious infectious... pest pestilence

2 noun · something that causes great... infestation

3 verb · to trouble or annoy someone... harass pester beset bedevil hound

Word family

Forms plaguedplaguesplaguing

Derived forms antiplaguebeplaguebioplaguenonplagueplague-riddenplaguedplaguefulplaguelessplaguelikeplaguerplaguesomeplaguey

Etymology

From Middle English plage, borrowed from Old French plage, from Latin plāga (“blow, wound”), from plangō (“to strike”). Cognate with Middle Dutch plāghe (> Dutch plaag), plāghen (> Dutch plagen); Middle Low German plāge; Middle High German plāge, pflāge (> German Plage); plāgen (> German plagen); Swedish plåga; French plaie, Occitan plaga. Doublet of plaga. Displaced native Old English wōl.

*pel- (beat) Proto-Indo-European plage Middle English plāga Latin

View etymology graph ->

External links

# plague

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B2
**Part of speech:** noun, verb
**IPA (US):** /pleɪɡ/
**Frequency rank:** 5194

## Meanings
1. A very serious infectious disease that spreads quickly and kills many people.
2. Something that causes great trouble, harm, or annoyance, often affecting many people.
3. To trouble or annoy someone continually over a long period.

## Examples
- Great plagues, such as the bubonic plague, have killed millions throughout history.
- A plague of grasshoppers destroyed the entire crop.
- He was plagued by doubts about his decision.

## Derived Forms
- antiplague
- beplague
- bioplague
- nonplague
- plague-ridden
- plagued
- plagueful
- plagueless
- plaguelike
- plaguer
- plaguesome
- plaguey

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *pel- (beat)
- Root: plage
- Root: plāga

## Etymology
From Middle English plage, borrowed from Old French plage, from Latin plāga (“blow, wound”), from plangō (“to strike”). Cognate with Middle Dutch plāghe (> Dutch plaag), plāghen (> Dutch plagen); Middle Low German plāge; Middle High German plāge, pflāge (> German Plage); plāgen (> German plagen); Swedish plåga; French plaie, Occitan plaga. Doublet of plaga. Displaced native Old English wōl.

## AI Etymology
Plague comes from Middle English plage, borrowed from Old French plage, from Latin plāga (“blow, wound”), from plangō (“to strike”). Cognate with Middle Dutch plāghe (> Dutch plaag), plāghen (> Dutch plagen); Middle Low German plāge; Middle High German plāge, pflāge (> German Plage); plāgen (> German plagen); Swedish plåga; French plaie, Occitan plaga. Doublet of plaga. Displaced native Old English wōl. In present-day English it covers a very serious infectious disease that spreads quickly and kills many people, something that causes great trouble, harm, or annoyance, often affecting many people, and to trouble or annoy someone continually over a long period. The wider family includes derived forms such as antiplague, beplague, bioplague, nonplague, plague-ridden.

## Topics
- Time

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plague

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