yaws

[ yawz ]

noun(used with a singular verb)Pathology.
  1. an infectious, nonvenereal tropical disease, primarily of children, characterized by raspberrylike eruptions of the skin and caused by a spirochete, Treponema pertenue, that is closely related to the agent of syphilis.

Origin of yaws

1
From Carib, dating back to 1670–80; see origin at -s3

Words Nearby yaws

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use yaws in a sentence

  • I noticed that from this moment Martin displayed a swiftly increasing interest in his own yaws.

  • Martin, in despair, has taken to horse-doctoring his yaws with bluestone and to blessing the Solomons.

  • All white men in the Solomons catch yaws, and every cut or abrasion practically means another yaw.

  • At the present moment of writing I have five yaws on my hands and three more on my shin.

  • Mrs. London and Jack came down with fever, and their yaws grew worse.

British Dictionary definitions for yaws

yaws

/ (jɔːz) /


noun
  1. (usually functioning as singular) an infectious nonvenereal disease of tropical climates with early symptoms resembling syphilis, characterized by red skin eruptions and, later, pain in the joints: it is caused by the spiral bacterium Treponema pertenue: Also called: framboesia

Origin of yaws

1
C17: of Carib origin

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

Scientific definitions for yaws

yaws

[ yôz ]


  1. A highly contagious tropical disease that chiefly affects children, caused by the spirochete Treponema pertenue and characterized by raspberrylike sores, especially on the hands, feet, and face.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.