cholera

American  

[kol-er-uh] / ˈkɒl ər ə /

noun

• choleras
  plural

1. Also called Asiatic cholera. Pathology. an acute, infectious disease, endemic in India and China and occasionally epidemic elsewhere, characterized by profuse diarrhea, vomiting, cramps, etc.

2. Veterinary Pathology. any of several diseases of domesticated animals that are characterized by depression, sleepiness, lack of appetite, and diarrhea.

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cholera British  

/ ˈkɒlərə /

noun

1. Also called: Asiatic cholera, epidemic cholera, Indian cholera. an acute intestinal infection characterized by severe diarrhoea, cramp, etc: caused by ingestion of water or food contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio comma

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cholera Scientific  

/ kŏl′ər-ə /

1. An infectious, sometimes fatal disease of the small intestine caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. It is spread from contaminated water and food and causes severe diarrhea, vomiting, and dehydration.

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cholera Cultural  

1. An acute disease, and an infectious disease, caused by a kind of bacterium that affects the intestines. Transmitted by food or water that has been contaminated with raw sewage, cholera is often fatal and is characterized by severe vomiting, diarrhea, and collapse.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• choleraic
  adjective
• choleroid
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• choleras
  plural

Etymology

Origin of cholera

First recorded in 1600–05 in sense “gastrointestinal disease” and in 1800–05 for its current meaning cholera ( def. 1 ); from Latin: “disease caused by bile,” from Greek choléra; see choler

Explanation

Cholera is a contagious disease that affects the small intestine. In places without safe, clean drinking water, cholera is common and can be deadly, especially for children. This infectious disease is caused by bacteria found in dirty water or food cooked in unsanitary conditions. Around the world, about five million people get cholera each year, mainly in countries that can't afford modern sanitation. Cholera kills about 150,000 annually, many of them very young children. The root of cholera means "bile;" in ancient Greek medicine, choler was one of the four humors and considered to be the cause of "irascibility or temper."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cholera choleras

Since then, it has conducted work to monitor, research and develop treatment for other serious infectious diseases, including cholera, anthrax and brucellosis.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

Since the start of this year, Yemen has tallied nearly 8,000 suspected cholera cases, including 22 deaths, and more than 9,600 dengue cases, including 37 people who had died, according to the WHO.

From Barron's ● Sep. 29, 2026

The tree was also linked to the 1832 cholera outbreak, with historical records indicating money was deposited there in exchange for food to reduce contact between people.

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

When this system is suppressed, cholera struggles to kill competing bacteria and cannot easily take over the intestinal environment.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 7, 2026

She told about the cholera epidemic and the muvuki.

From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer

The sun-strokes, the dysenteries, the fevers, the choleras, have affinity for July and August.

From Around The Tea-Table by T. De Witt (Thomas De Witt) Talmage

Have seen three choleras, two army fevers, and yellow-jack without end.

From Two Years Ago, Volume I by Charles Kingsley

I've seen two or three choleras, here and there, and a Black Death and a bubonic plague.

From VC — A Chronicle of Castle Barfield and of the Crimea by David Christie Murray

They cause much sickness in their season, creating choleras, cramps, and dysenteries.

From The Cook's Oracle; and Housekeeper's Manual by William Kitchiner

Yes; we should surely respect the expressed will and conviction of the most practical of nations, arrived at after the experience of three choleras, stretching over a whole generation.

From Sanitary and Social Lectures, etc by Charles Kingsley