paraplegia

American  

[par-uh-plee-jee-uh, -juh] / ˌpær əˈpli dʒi ə, -dʒə /

noun

Pathology.

1. paralysis of both lower limbs due to spinal disease or injury.

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paraplegia British  

/ ˌpærəˈpliːdʒə /

noun

1. pathol paralysis of the lower half of the body, usually as the result of disease or injury of the spine Compare hemiplegia quadriplegia

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paraplegia Scientific  

/ păr′ə-plē′jē-ə /

1. Paralysis of the lower part of the body, caused by injury to the spinal cord.

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Other Word Forms

• paraplegic
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of paraplegia

First recorded in 1580–90; from New Latin, from Ionic Greek (Hippocrates) paraplēgíē; “hemiplegia”; see para- ¹, -plegia

Compare meaning

How does paraplegia compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• tetraplegia vs. paraplegia
• paraplegia vs. hemiplegia

Example Sentences

Scientists at Ruhr University Bochum found that the protein produced by CD99L2 works as an activating partner for CAPN1, a calcium-dependent protease already known to be involved in hereditary spastic paraplegia and ataxia.

From Science Daily • Jun. 13, 2026

The chatbot came back with a list of possible conditions, including hereditary spastic paraplegia.

From BBC • Apr. 9, 2026

The plaintiff, Darwin Boggs, has paraplegia and uses a wheelchair when traveling in public, the suit said.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 6, 2024

The coroner’s report cited complications from paraplegia, but Swope blamed his isolated life in the trailer.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 23, 2022

But the most frequent cause of paraplegia is from a protuberance of one of the spinal vertebr�; which is owing to the innutrition or softness of bones, described in Class I. 2.

From Zoonomia, Vol. II Or, the Laws of Organic Life by Darwin, Erasmus