meningitis

American  

[men-in-jahy-tis] / ˌmɛn ɪnˈdʒaɪ tɪs /

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.

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meningitis British  

/ ˌmɛnɪnˈdʒɪtɪk, ˌmɛnɪnˈdʒaɪtɪs /

noun

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

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meningitis Scientific  

/ 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.

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meningitis Cultural  

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

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Other Word Forms

• meningitic adjective

Etymology

Origin of meningitis

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

Example Sentences

He contracted meningitis as a youth and still suffers from convulsions.

From Los Angeles Times

Australian Test cricket great Damien Martyn has revealed he was only given a 50 percent chance of surviving after being put in an induced coma with meningitis last month.

From Barron's

He referred her for a round of intravenous immunoglobulin treatment — which she said caused severe headaches, aches, nausea, dizziness and aseptic meningitis — and prescribed a powerful intravenous immunosuppressant used for blood cancers and autoimmune illnesses.

From BBC

Other changes include dropping a mandatory hepatitis B vaccine for newborns, as well as identifying bacterial meningitis, rotavirus and COVID-19 as recommended only for “high risk groups.”

From Los Angeles Times

Vaccines for meningitis, hepatitis A and B, dengue, flu, Covid and RSV will now be recommended only for “high-risk” children, or be left to “shared clinical decision-making” between doctors and parents.

From The Wall Street Journal