mountain sickness
Americannoun
noun
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Also called: altitude sickness. nausea, headache, and shortness of breath caused by climbing to high altitudes (usually above 12 000 ft)
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vet science a disease of cattle kept at high altitude in S and N America, characterized by congestive heart failure
Etymology
Origin of mountain sickness
First recorded in 1840–50
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.
In his defence, US Navy doctors said he had been suffering from acute mountain sickness at the time of the accident.
From BBC • Feb. 17, 2024
In the telling by Alkonis’ family and supporters, the naval officer abruptly lost consciousness in the car, causing him to slump over behind the wheel after suffering acute mountain sickness.
From Seattle Times • Jun. 5, 2022
The symptoms of acute mountain sickness include headache, nausea, vomiting, shortness of breath, loss of appetite, and flulike malaise, and they can all occur without any physical exertion.
From Slate • Feb. 26, 2018
When I got to the top, I had mountain sickness, so I wasn’t thinking clearly,” Sean Turner said.
From Washington Times • Sep. 19, 2015
Presently, a dreadful sense of weakness seized him, that mountain sickness which produces the same effects as sea-sickness.
From Tartarin On The Alps by Wormeley, Katharine Prescott
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.