pox
Americannoun
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a disease characterized by multiple skin pustules, as smallpox.
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Also called soil rot. Plant Pathology. a disease of sweet potatoes, characterized by numerous pitlike lesions on the roots, caused by a fungus, Streptomyces ipomoea.
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(used as an interjection to express distaste, rejection, aversion, etc.).
A pox on you and your bright ideas!
noun
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any disease characterized by the formation of pustules on the skin that often leave pockmarks when healed
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an informal name for syphilis
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archaic (interjection) an expression of intense disgust or aversion for someone
Etymology
Origin of pox
1540–50 (earlier as surname); spelling variant of pocks, plural of pock
Explanation
A pox is an illness, especially one that's particularly contagious and causes blisters or rashes. Today, most poxes are preventable through vaccines. The most devastating of the poxes was probably smallpox, a viral disease that killed around 500 million people during the 20th century before being officially eradicated in 1980. A more common pox is chickenpox, which is highly infectious and can be fatal but is not as deadly. What these illnesses have in common is scarring blisters, once known themselves as pox, from pock, "pustule or blister."
Vocabulary lists containing pox
"The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet," Vocabulary from Act 2
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"The Tempest," Vocabulary from Acts 1 and 2
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It was the first quarantine site set up in the UK since 1978, when a small pox outbreak saw Catherine-de-Barnes Hospital in Solihull used to isolated cases.
From BBC • May 11, 2026
Becerra pointed to his experiences leading the sprawling federal health agency in the Biden administration, including dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, the wildfires that devastated Maui, Hawaii, avian flu and monkey pox.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026
Greek authorities have seized pox vaccines originating from Turkey on at least two occasions.
From Barron's • Mar. 30, 2026
Air travelers standing in line for hours to get through security might wish a pox on all politicians.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026
The doctor took a look and said it wasn’t chicken pox and it wasn’t measles.
From "Maniac Magee" by Jerry Spinelli
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
