murrain

American  

[mur-in] / ˈmɜr ɪn /

noun

1. Veterinary Pathology. any of various diseases of cattle, as anthrax, foot-and-mouth disease, and Texas fever.

2. Obsolete. a plague or pestilence.

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murrain British  

/ ˈmʌrɪn /

noun

1. any plaguelike disease in cattle

2. a plague

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Etymology

Origin of murrain

1300–50; Middle English moreine, moryne < Middle French morine a plague, equivalent to mor ( ir ) to die (≪ Latin morī ) + -ine -ine ²

Example Sentences

Once again last week, as it had every year since 1911, Sweden's Taxeringskalender was proving a boon to the boastful, a murrain to the miserly and a surefire smash in the bookstalls.

From Time Magazine Archive

At last the strong-minded female was compelled to give in; fire was obtained—-but of bad quality, for it did not stop the murrain.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 4 "Finland" to "Fleury, Andre" by Various

We read in Wuttke that some time ago the authorities of a Mecklenburg village ordered a “wild fire” to be lit against a murrain amongst the cattle.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 4 "Finland" to "Fleury, Andre" by Various

Nay, if a shifting wind but carried the ashes landwards, blight or murrain would follow surely.

From The Unknown Sea by Housman, Clemence

Treatment.—In the early stages of joint murrain and its kindred maladies, if inflammatory fever is present, the first and most important step is to relax the external surface, as directed in article Pneumonia, p.

From The American Reformed Cattle Doctor by Dadd, George