whitlow

[hwit-loh, wit-]

noun

an inflammation of the deeper tissues of a finger or toe, especially of the terminal phalanx, usually producing suppuration.

Origin of whitlow

1350–1400; Middle English whit(f)lowe, whitflawe. See white, flaw¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for whitlow

Historical Examples of whitlow

Paul, you land a couple of blows on Whitlow and then follow Alice.
The Moving Picture Girls in War Plays
Laura Lee Hope
A felon or Whitlow is a more extensive and a more serious condition.
The Eugenic Marriage, Volume IV. (of IV.)
Grant Hague
Mr. Whitlow rents a gin, but will own one of his own this year.
Tuskegee & Its People: Their Ideals and Achievements
Various
Whitlow half-expected him to remove his hat, but he did not.
Minor Detail
John Michael Sharkey
"That's fortunate," said Whitlow, munching desultorily at his sandwich.
Minor Detail
John Michael Sharkey

British Dictionary definitions for whitlow

whitlow

noun

any pussy inflammation of the end of a finger or toe

Word Origin for whitlow

C14: changed from whitflaw, from white + flaw 1

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

Word Origin and History for whitlow

"inflammation on a finger or toe," mid-15c., alteration of whitflaw (c.1400), from flaw, with first element possibly from Dutch vijt or Low German fit "abscess."

whitlow in Medicine

whitlow

[wĭt′lō′]

felon