mastitis

American

[ma-stahy-tis] / mæˈstaɪ tɪs /

noun

Pathology. inflammation of the breast.
Veterinary Pathology. inflammation of the udder, especially of cows; garget.

mastitis British

/ mæˈstaɪtɪs /

noun

inflammation of a breast or an udder

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

mastitic

adjective

Etymology

Origin of mastitis

First recorded in 1835–45; mast- + -itis

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.

See Examples For:

mastitis

The discovery helps explain why H5N1 caused severe mastitis rather than respiratory illness in dairy cattle.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 23, 2026

In detention, Flores said, she began to suffer a painful swelling, which she believed could have been mastitis brought on by her inability to nurse her baby.

From Salon ● Mar. 24, 2026

A government spokesperson said the infected sheep was a female who had been showing signs of mastitis, an inflammation of the breast tissue.

From BBC ● Mar. 24, 2025

A new mother stands in a drugstore, holding a screaming infant as she fights mastitis, desperate to feed her baby.

From New York Times ● Dec. 7, 2022

A similar enlargement is met with in the axilla in cases of chronic interstitial mastitis, and in the groin as a result of chronic irritation about the external genitals, such as balanitis.

From Manual of Surgery Volume First: General Surgery. Sixth Edition. by Alexis Thomson

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023