hemophilia

[ hee-muh-fil-ee-uh, -feel-yuh, hem-uh- ]

noun

any of several X-linked genetic disorders, symptomatic chiefly in males, in which excessive bleeding occurs owing to the absence or abnormality of a clotting factor in the blood.

Origin of hemophilia

From New Latin, dating back to 1850–55; see origin at hemo-, -philia

Words Nearby hemophilia

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use hemophilia in a sentence

Benzene causes cancer, thins the blood to cause symptoms resembling hemophilia, and damages fetuses exposed to it.
Pollution Is a Violent Crime—Prosecute It as Such | Jedediah Purdy | May 8, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Coagulation is notably delayed in hemophilia and icterus and after administration of citric acid.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis | James Campbell Todd
hemophilia is a peculiar disease, consisting in frequent and often uncontrollable hemorrhages.
Woman | William J. Robinson
An even more striking manifestation of a physical anomaly, as a family trait, is the condition known as hemophilia.
Essays In Pastoral Medicine | Austin Malley
In 1539 Benedictus noted the occurrence of hemophilia or bleeders' disease.
The Century of Columbus | James J. Walsh

In hemophilia, uncontrollable bleeding may occur from trifling injuries.
Surgery, with Special Reference to Podiatry | Maximilian Stern

Scientific definitions for hemophilia

hemophilia

[ hē′mə-fĭl′ē-ə ]

Any of several hereditary coagulation disorders, seen almost exclusively in males, in which the blood fails to clot normally because of a deficiency or an abnormality of one of the clotting factors.

Cultural definitions for hemophilia

hemophilia

[ (hee-muh-fil-ee-uh, hee-muh-feel-yuh) ]

A hereditary disease caused by a deficiency of a substance in the blood that aids in clotting. Hemophiliacs can bleed to death even from small cuts and bruises, because their blood has largely lost the ability to clot.

Notes for hemophilia

Queen Victoria of Britain, whose descendants have been kings and queens of several countries in Europe, carried the gene for hemophilia, which has turned up repeatedly in royal families since her lifetime. Her great-grandson, the heir to the throne of Russia, suffered from the disease, and his parents fell under the influence of the monk Grigori Rasputin in hopes of a miraculous cure. The resulting chaos in the government of Russia helped bring on the Russian Revolution and the establishment of the Soviet Union.

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