meningitis

[ men-in-jahy-tis ]

noun

, Pathology.

1. inflammation of the meninges, especially of the pia mater and arachnoid, caused by a bacterial or viral infection and characterized by high fever, severe headache, and stiff neck or back muscles.

meningitis

/ ˌmɛnɪnˈdʒɪtɪk; ˌmɛnɪnˈdʒaɪtɪs /

noun

1. inflammation of the membranes that surround the brain or spinal cord, caused by infection

meningitis

/ mĕn′ĭn-jī′tĭs /

1. Inflammation of the meninges of the brain and the spinal cord, usually resulting from a bacterial or viral infection and often characterized by fever, vomiting, an intense headache, and a stiff neck.

meningitis

1. Inflammation of the meninges of the brain or spinal cord , most often resulting from a bacterial or viral infection .

Derived Forms

• meningitic, adjective

Other Words From

• men·in·git·ic [men-in-, jit, -ik], adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of meningitis¹

From New Latin, dating back to 1820–30; meninges, -itis

Example Sentences

In the meningitis example I gave, the disease was so apparent to people that they really wanted to get vaccinated.

From Nautilus

During the day-long meeting, however, the members discussed whether to allow vaccination with the Pfizer-BioNTech shot along with other vaccinations teens may need to get, including against HPV, hepatitis and meningitis.

From Time

As for Carlson’s broader case that deaths after coronavirus vaccinations far exceed deaths after other vaccines — he specifically mentioned the vaccine for bacterial meningitis — again, this is apples to oranges.

From Washington Post

Born in Tuscumbia, Alabama, in 1880, Helen Keller thrived as a healthy infant for 19 months, until she fell ill with what was probably meningitis.

From Nautilus

Each got either the new coronavirus vaccine or a vaccine against bacteria that can cause meningitis.

From Science News For Students

Nancy was born with meningitis, septicemia, and hydrocephalus.

From The Daily Beast

After their split, Jim Friel died shockingly at age 48 of bacterial meningitis.

From The Daily Beast

Several years before Lou contracted ALS, Bruce Campbell, a Cleveland outfielder, came down with spinal meningitis.

From The Daily Beast

Rarely, severe infections can lead to inflammation of the brain or meningitis.

From The Daily Beast

One is meningitis, an infection of the lining of the brain, that is fatal in about 10 percent of cases.

From The Daily Beast

Examination of the fluid obtained by lumbar puncture is of value in diagnosis of certain forms of meningitis.

From Project Gutenberg

Tubercle bacilli can be found in the majority of cases of tuberculous meningitis.

From Project Gutenberg

Various organisms have been found in other forms of meningitis—the pneumococcus most frequently.

From Project Gutenberg

Epidemic cerebrospinal meningitis is a very fatal disease at times in America.

From Project Gutenberg

Headaches may be occasioned by disorders of the brain and spinal column, such as meningitis.

From Project Gutenberg