cellulitis

[ sel-yuh-lahy-tis ]

/ ˌsɛl yəˈlaɪ tɪs /

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noun Pathology.

inflammation of cellular tissue.

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Origin of cellulitis

1860–65; <New Latin, equivalent to cellul(a) (see cellular) + -itis-itis

Words nearby cellulitis

cellular slime mold, cellulase, cellulate, cellule, cellulite, cellulitis, celluloid, cellulolytic, cellulose, cellulose acetate, cellulose nitrate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use cellulitis in a sentence

It usually subsides under hot fomentations, but suppuration and even cellulitis of the orbit have been known to occur.
A System of Operative Surgery, Volume IV (of 4)|Various
The cellulitis, also, may develop at some distance from the seat of inoculation, the organisms having travelled by the lymphatics.
Manual of Surgery|Alexis Thomson and Alexander Miles
Cellulitis of the forearm is usually a sequel to one of the deeper varieties of whitlow.
Manual of Surgery|Alexis Thomson and Alexander Miles
It may become purulent as a result of infection, and this may be the starting-point of lymphangitis or cellulitis.
Manual of Surgery|Alexis Thomson and Alexander Miles

The great thickening of the scalp in the region of the wound shows a marked cellulitis.
Gunshot Roentgenograms|Clyde S. Ford

British Dictionary definitions for cellulitis

cellulitis

/ (ˌsɛljʊˈlaɪtɪs) /

noun

inflammation of any of the tissues of the body, characterized by fever, pain, swelling, and redness of the affected area

Word Origin for cellulitis

C19: from Latin cellula cellule + -itis

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