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canker

[ kang-ker ]
/ ˈkæŋ kər /
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noun
verb (used with object)
to infect with canker.
to corrupt; destroy slowly.
verb (used without object)
to become infected with or as if with canker.
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Origin of canker

before 1000; Middle English; Old English cancer<Latin cancer;see cancer
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use canker in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for canker

canker
/ (ˈkæŋkə) /

noun
an ulceration, esp of the lips or lining of the oral cavity
vet science
  1. a disease of horses in which the horn of the hoofs becomes soft and spongy
  2. an inflammation of the lining of the external ear, esp in dogs and cats, resulting in a discharge and sometimes ulceration
  3. ulceration or abscess of the mouth, eyelids, ears, or cloaca of birds
an open wound in the stem of a tree or shrub, caused by injury or parasites
something evil that spreads and corrupts
verb
to infect or become infected with or as if with canker

Word Origin for canker

Old English cancer, from Latin cancer crab, cancerous sore
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
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