pandemic

American  

[pan-dem-ik] / pænˈdɛm ɪk /

adjective

1. (of a disease) prevalent throughout an entire country, continent, or the whole world; epidemic over a large area.

2. general; universal.

   pandemic fear of atomic war.

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noun

• pandemics
  plural

1. a disease prevalent throughout an entire country, continent, or the whole world.

pandemic British  

/ pænˈdɛmɪk /

adjective

1. (of a disease) affecting persons over a wide geographical area; extensively epidemic

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noun

1. a pandemic disease

pandemic Scientific  

/ păn-dĕm′ĭk /

1. An epidemic that spreads over a very wide area, such as an entire country or continent.

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pandemic Cultural  

1. A widespread epidemic affecting a large part of the population.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• pandemia
  noun
• pandemicity
  noun
• interpandemic
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• pandemics
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of pandemic

First recorded in 1660–70; from Late Latin pandēm(us), from Greek pándēmos “common, public” ( pan- “all” + dêm(os) “the people” + -os adjective suffix) + -ic; see pan-

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Explanation

Remember the 2009 swine flu? That was a pandemic — an illness that swept over much of the globe. People fear pandemics, and with good reason. The black plague that ran through Asia and Europe in the 1300s is believed to have killed as much as half of Europe's population, between 75 and 100 million folks. The word comes from ancient Greek — pan (meaning "all") and demos (meaning "people"), or simply put — all the people. Of course, people across the globe suffer from the seasonal flu, and many die from it. But it isn't considered a pandemic because it is generally harmless to the healthy.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pandemic pandemics

Whittier College’s melt is up from high single-digits before the pandemic to 12% last year, Woods said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026

Phone First was initially introduced during the pandemic in late 2020 to reduce the risk of Covid-19 spreading among patients in crowded hospital waiting rooms.

From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2026

For investors who got their start during the pandemic, sharp selloffs can resurface memories of the spectacular rebound that followed the COVID-era crash.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 5, 2026

Observers say the years since the COVID-19 pandemic emergency have shown how tangled the industry’s regulation can get in L.A., so investors are taking their money to other cities.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026

And even this enormous force might not have overcome the empire if while Cortes was building his ships Tenochtitlan had not been swept by smallpox in the same pandemic that later wiped out Tawantinsuyu.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

It is paying interest to this day: “It is astonishing to think of the wars, revolutions, religious revolt, pandemics and other disasters this bond has survived,” the author marvels.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

Bunch “briefed the Regents on his efforts to navigate the dual pandemics caused by the Coronavirus and issues surrounding race, racism, and racial identity,” the minutes of the June 2020 meeting stated.

From Salon ● Sep. 25, 2026

In areas such as climate science, pandemics, artificial intelligence or medical research, public conversations frequently invoke scientific consensus.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 9, 2026

He added that El Niño, as well as global shipping disruption and the threat of pandemics, mean you cannot "just rely on the private sector coming through every single time".

From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026

Why hypothesize the existence of vast, super-deadly pandemics that seem unlike anything else in the historical record?

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

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