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epidemiologist

American  
[ep-i-dee-mee-ah-luhj-ist, ep-i-de-] / ˌɛp ɪˌdi miˈɑ lədʒ ɪst, ˌɛp ɪˌdɛ- /

noun

  1. a specialist in epidemiology.


Explanation

An epidemiologist is a scientist or medical professional who specializes patterns of diseases that spread between people. Epidemiologists study things like the causes and treatment of lung disease, for example. If you're interested in public health or communicable illnesses, you might decide to be an epidemiologist one day. An epidemiologist might study the spread of a strain of the flu, or investigate the causes of a measles outbreak. Epidemiologist comes from epidemiology, "the study of epidemics," which has a Greek root: epidemios, "among the people."

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Vocabulary lists containing epidemiologist

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Investment strategists played armchair epidemiologist for weeks, dutifully updating case counts and laying out scenarios.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026

"The impact is real. The impact is certainly being seen across the board. And I think the scariest part is, we're only in the first year," epidemiologist Syra Madad told AFP.

From Barron's • Jan. 15, 2026

I needed a second opinion before tossing mine, so I asked Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz, a regular Slate contributor and epidemiologist for his take.

From Slate • Jan. 14, 2026

“These decisions happening today are going to have terrible residual effects later,” said Rivera, the L.A. epidemiologist.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 13, 2025

He had recently been assigned to Michigan as a state epidemiologist, and suddenly he had been called to Africa.

From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston