virologist

American  

[vahy-rol-uh-jist, vi-] / vaɪˈrɒl ə dʒɪst, vɪ- /

noun

1. a medical researcher or scientist who studies viruses and the diseases caused by them.

   She worked for several years as a virologist on the dengue fever vaccine development team, devising ways to weaken the virus so it could be incorporated into a vaccine.

---

Etymology

Origin of virologist

virolog(y) ( def. ) + -ist ( def. )

---

Explanation

A virologist is a scientist who studies infectious diseases. Contagious viruses like measles, mumps, the flu, and coronavirus are the particular focus of a virologist. After 19th-century scientists found that some diseases were caused by viruses, rather than bacteria or fungi, the very first virologists began examining these newly-discovered microorganisms. Today there are many advanced techniques and tools for understanding viruses and the infections they produce in humans. Virologist is from virus, originally defined as "poisonous substance," and its Latin root, which means "poison, sap of plants, or slimy liquid."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

virologist

In 1956 he began working with Mikhail Chumakov, a prominent Soviet virologist.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 21, 2026

"It's an outbreak that will spread very rapidly, all the more so because it has broken out in a densely populated province," virologist Jean-Jacques Muyembe told AFP.

From Barron's ● May 18, 2026

“Viruses and bacteria that were under control are being set free on our most vulnerable,” Dr. James Alwine, a virologist and member of the nonprofit advocacy group Defend Public Health, said to The Times.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 9, 2026

A virologist has said mosquito-borne diseases are "likely" to increase in range after West Nile virus was detected in the UK for the first time.

From BBC ● May 25, 2025

Ekman had tracked down a hundred thousand feet of film that had been shot by the virologist Carleton Gajdusek in the remote jungles of Papua New Guinea.

From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---