hantavirus

American  

[hahn-tuh-vahy-ruhs, han-] / ˈhɑn təˌvaɪ rəs, ˈhæn- /

noun

• hantaviruses
  plural

1. any of several viruses of the family Bunyaviridae, spread chiefly by wild rodents, that cause acute respiratory illness, kidney failure, and other syndromes.

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hantavirus British  

/ ˈhæntəˌvaɪrəs /

noun

1. any one of a group of viruses that are transmitted to humans by rodents and cause disease of varying severity, ranging from a mild form of influenza to respiratory or kidney failure

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hantavirus Scientific  

/ hăn′tə-vī′rəs /

1. Any of a group of viruses of the genus Hantavirus, carried by rodents, that cause severe respiratory infections in humans and, in some cases, hemorrhaging, kidney disease, and death.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• hantaviruses
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of hantavirus

First recorded in 1975–80; after the Hantaan River in Korea, near which the virus first afflicted Westerners in the 1950s

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hantavirus hantaviruses

When a cruise ship passenger contracted the rare hantavirus in May, accounts also immediately touted ivermectin as a "cure" even while there is no known treatment.

From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026

That’s very different from our recent experience with hantavirus, which can take 42 days for symptoms to show, necessitating long periods of quarantine for people who were exposed.

From Slate ● Oct. 8, 2026

A Bay Area resident stuck on a cruise ship with a deadly hantavirus outbreak has returned to Santa Clara County and is being monitored by health officials.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

The outbreak, which infected 13 people and killed three, involved the Andes virus, a rare hantavirus strain.

From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026

Ebola virus disease and hantavirus have attracted renewed attention in recent weeks because of the serious risks they pose to public health.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 22, 2026

In Europe and Asia, hantaviruses are more commonly associated with hemorrhagic fever and kidney dysfunction.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 22, 2026

While most hantaviruses do not pass from person to person, rare instances of human transmission have been documented with the Andes virus strain, which is the strain behind this outbreak.

From BBC ● May 18, 2026

Even before this outbreak started, Moderna did some research on hantaviruses in collaboration with the U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 11, 2026

The drugmaker has studied hantaviruses for years in collaboration with the U.S.

From Barron's ● May 8, 2026

Now, as health officials and the travel industry cope with the fallout from the cruise outbreak, the lack of attention to hantaviruses appears short-sighted.

From MarketWatch ● May 8, 2026

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