bird flu

British

noun

Also called: avian flu. a form of influenza occurring in poultry mainly in Japan, China and Southeast Asia, caused by a virus capable of spreading to humans

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The WHO tries to keep tabs on these things, listing things like bird flu, Ebola, Nipah, Lassa and yes, hantavirus, as top-ranking threats to global health.

From Salon • May 11, 2026

Egg prices started to normalize a year ago as bird flu cases eased, flocks were rebuilt, and supply recovered.

From Barron's • Apr. 17, 2026

The bird flu outbreak is ongoing and has led to the culling of millions of birds, mostly turkeys, over the past few months.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

Egg prices had reached record highs a year ago as bird flu caused a sharp drop in supply.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 1, 2026

"I hate any kind of pollution to be honest, there's blue and green algae here, there's bird flu, ducks and swans dying."

From BBC • Mar. 10, 2026

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023