Black Death

American  

noun

1. a form of bubonic plague that spread over Europe in the 14th century and killed an estimated quarter of the population.

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Black Death British  

noun

1. a form of bubonic plague pandemic in Europe and Asia during the 14th century, when it killed over 50 million people See bubonic plague

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Black Death Scientific  

1. An epidemic of plague, especially its bubonic form, that occurred in outbreaks between 1347 and 1400. It originated in Asia and then swept through Europe, where it killed about a third of the population.

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Black Death Cultural  

1. A disease that killed nearly half the people of western Europe in the fourteenth century. It was a form of the bubonic plague.

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Etymology

Origin of Black Death

First recorded in 1815–25

Compare meaning

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

• bubonic plague vs. Black Death
• Spanish flu vs. Black Death

Example Sentences

Plagues have existed throughout history, said Heeney, from the Black Death of the Middle Ages ages to the 1918-20 influenza pandemic which killed an estimated 25-50 million globally.

From Barron's • Jun. 25, 2026

Only two decades ago, it was widely doubted by specialists that the Black Death was caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, the agent of the bubonic plague.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026

Anyone bold enough to attempt a new history of the Black Death today deserves our empathy.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026

Indeed, history is filled with examples of this, from the medieval Black Death hitchhiking along the Silk Road to the “Russian flu” pandemic of the late 19th century that was accelerated by trains and steamships.

From Salon • Feb. 28, 2026

But plague didn’t begin to hit Europe with full force as the Black Death epidemics until A.D.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond