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patient zero

American  

[pey-shuhnt zeer-oh] / ˈpeɪ ʃənt ˈzɪər oʊ /

noun

1. Pathology. the first known carrier of infection in an outbreak.

   Public health officials are tracing all contacts of infected patients, trying to work their way back to find patient zero.

2. the person or thing that is believed to be the point of origin for any spreading effect, status, or event, especially if negative.

   One rowdy new student was patient zero for all kinds of classroom chaos and problem behaviors.

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Etymology

Origin of patient zero

First recorded in 1985–90

Example Sentences

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patient zero

According to Kamba, patient zero was a nurse who reported to a health facility in provincial capital Bunia on April 24, with symptoms suggesting Ebola.

From Barron's ● May 16, 2026

I could not identify the patient zero of the cheese-pull phenomenon, but it was around this time that Chili’s became inescapable on TikTok—everyone stretching cheese as far as they could while praising the Triple Dipper.

From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2025

McConaughey appears to be patient zero for testing the theory while living in the middle of the United States.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 8, 2024

Doctors believe she may have been "patient zero" for the respiratory illness.

From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2022

The Oregon Shakespeare Festival, which before the pandemic had been one of the largest nonprofit theaters in the country, is, in many ways, patient zero.

From New York Times ● Aug. 11, 2022