ratbite fever

[ rat-bahyt ]

/ ˈrætˌbaɪt /

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noun Pathology.

either of two relapsing febrile diseases, widely distributed geographically, caused by infection with Streptobacillus moniliformis or Spirillum minor and transmitted by rats.

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Origin of ratbite fever

First recorded in 1905–10; rat + bite

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use ratbite fever in a sentence

Or once in a while the rodent will spread infection by biting causing a disease called, chillingly enough, rat bite fever.
Yosemite Hanta Virus: Nature Strikes Back|Kent Sepkowitz|September 3, 2012|DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for ratbite fever

ratbite fever

ratbite disease

/ (ˈrætˌbaɪt) /

noun

pathol an acute infectious febrile disease caused by the bite of a rat infected with either of two pathogenic bacteria (Streptobacillus moniliformis or Spirillum minus)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012