anemia

American  

[uh-nee-mee-uh] / əˈni mi ə /

Or anaemia

noun

anemias plural

1. Pathology. a quantitative deficiency of the hemoglobin, often accompanied by a reduced number of red blood cells and causing pallor, weakness, and breathlessness.

2. a lack of power, vigor, vitality, or colorfulness.

   His writing suffers from anemia.

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anemia British  

/ əˈniːmɪə /

noun

1. the usual US spelling of anaemia

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anemia Scientific  

/ ə-nē′mē-ə /

1. A deficiency in the oxygen-carrying component of the blood, as in the amount of hemoglobin or the number or volume of red blood cells. Iron deficiency, often caused by inadequate dietary consumption of iron, and blood loss are common causes of anemia.

2. See also aplastic anemia hemolytic anemia and sickle cell anemia

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anemia Cultural  

1. A condition in which the capacity of the blood to carry oxygen is decreased because of too few red blood cells in circulation or because of too little hemoglobin.

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Discover More

Because people suffering from anemia often appear weak and pale, the term is frequently used to describe general apathy or weakness: “The team's performance has been pretty anemic these past few weeks.”

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• pseudoanemia
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• anemias
  plural

Etymology

Origin of anemia

First recorded in 1800–10; from New Latin, from Greek anaimía “bloodlessness, lack of blood”; see an- ¹, -emia

Compare meaning

How does anemia compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• sickle cell anemia vs. anemia
• thalassemia vs. anemia

Explanation

Anemia is a medical condition resulting from lack of red blood cells or hemoglobin in the blood. People with anemia are often pale and lacking in energy. You become anemic when you are not getting enough iron. It is common among college students living away from home for the first time, because they often subsist on a diet of cheap carbohydrates instead of iron-rich, but expensive, foods like red meat and fresh vegetables.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

anemia anemias

Yet experts are still trying to determine the cause of her condition, which includes severe anemia.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026

Rescued Big Bear eagle Jackie has anemia and kidney inflammation, and remains in critical condition.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026

Blood-loss anemia happens when the body loses red blood cells through bleeding.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 25, 2026

Until then, children in the area generally only saw doctors in dire emergencies; rickets, anemia and other consequences of malnutrition were rampant.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026

Take sickle-cell anemia as a case in point.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee

The effects of the various anemias are widespread, because reduced numbers of RBCs or hemoglobin will result in lower levels of oxygen being delivered to body tissues.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013

Various disease processes also can lead to anemias.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013

Vitamin-deficient anemias generally involve insufficient vitamin B12 and folate.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013

And here too, athletes are eagerly dogging the footsteps of medical researchers, specifically those working to treat chronic anemias, conditions in which red blood cells dwindle to dangerously low levels, starving tissues of oxygen.

From Time Magazine Archive

Termed pandu roga in Sanskrit, anemias were further subdivided into categories.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee