bluetongue

[ bloo-tuhng ]

/ ˈbluˌtʌŋ /

noun Veterinary Pathology.

a viral disease of sheep and sometimes cattle, transmitted by biting insects and characterized by high fever, excessive salivation, swelling of the face and tongue, and cyanosis of the tongue.

Nearby words

bluet, bluethroat, bluethroat pikeblenny, bluetick, bluetit, bluetongue, bluetooth, bluette, blueweed, bluewood, bluey

Origin of bluetongue

First recorded in 1860–65; blue + tongue

Also called catarrhal fever.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for bluetongue (1 of 2)

bluetongue

/ (ˌbluːˈtʌŋ) /

noun

an Australian lizard, Tiliqua scincoides, having a cobalt-blue tongue

British Dictionary definitions for bluetongue (2 of 2)

bluetongue

/ (ˌbluːˈtʌŋ) /

noun

vet science a viral disease of domestic and wild ruminants transmitted by arthropods and characterized by reproductive problems or vasculitis. Sheep, which are most frequently affected, develop swelling of the face and a cyanotic tongue

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