catarrh

American  

[kuh-tahr] / kəˈtɑr /

noun

1. Pathology. inflammation of a mucous membrane, especially of the respiratory tract, accompanied by excessive secretions.

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catarrh British  

/ kəˈtɑː /

noun

1. inflammation of a mucous membrane with increased production of mucus, esp affecting the nose and throat in the common cold

2. the mucus so formed

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Other Word Forms

• catarrhal adjective
• catarrhally adverb
• catarrhous adjective
• noncatarrhal adjective
• postcatarrhal adjective

Etymology

Origin of catarrh

1350–1400; Middle English < Late Latin catarrhus < Greek katárrous literally, down-flowing, equivalent to katarr ( eîn ) to flow down ( kata- cata- + rheîn to flow) + -ous, variant of -eos (theme vowel + adj. suffix)

Example Sentences

Bleeding, cold baths, opium and self-induced vomiting - and still Liverpool-born London doctor John Bostock couldn't find relief from the catarrh and blockages of the sinus that plagued him every summer.

From BBC • Jul. 4, 2014

Yet he had also suffered from catarrh - blockages of the sinus and a general feeling of heaviness and tiredness - in June every year since the age of eight.

From BBC • Jun. 30, 2014

Sputum, the tar of frequent No6s, catarrh, Spangles slivers and the reddish dye of aniseed balls gave the splotches the look of abstract expressionist artworks.

From The Guardian • Feb. 18, 2011

King George was in bed with catarrh at Sandringham, the Duke of York in bed with a cold at No.145 Piccadilly.

From Time Magazine Archive

Though it was summer and the leaves heavy on the trees, people went about the streets coughing as if it were the catarrh season.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson