comorbid
Americanadjective
Usage
What does comorbid mean? Comorbid describes two or more diseases or medical conditions that exist at the same time in a person, as in The patient had a case of malaria with comorbid pneumonia. The conditions or illnesses said to be comorbid are unrelated to each other. They are simply occurring at the same time. One did not cause the other. However, the presence of one disease can worsen the condition of another. Comorbidity is the state of having multiple medical conditions at the same time, as in Arthritis is a common comorbidity of obesity. Example: The man was suffering from depression and comorbid insomnia.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of comorbid
First recorded in 1980–85; co- + morbid ( def. ) (in the sense “associated with or characteristic of a disease”)
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.
Patients with asthma, a comorbid disease that frequently occurs along with atopic dermatitis, showed a median 56% reduction in fractional exhaled nitric oxide, a measure of airway inflammation.
From Barron's ● Dec. 8, 2025
This glycan signature also has the potential to predict the onset of comorbid conditions in PLWH, such as cancer, years in advance.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 10, 2024
"After FCE treatment, 18 out of 20 patients showed improvement in most core and comorbid symptoms of autism, and in quality of life for patients and their families," the authors concluded.
From Salon ● Sep. 17, 2023
“There are still plenty of susceptible older adults — living with comorbid conditions or living in multigenerational households — who are highly vulnerable.”
From Seattle Times ● May 31, 2022
Many of the variables that went into the algorithm—oxygen levels, age, comorbid conditions—were completely different during the pandemic.
From Slate ● May 3, 2022
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
