contagious disease

noun

plural contagious diseases

: an infectious disease (such as influenza, measles, or tuberculosis) that is transmitted by contact with an infected individual or infected bodily discharges or fluids (such as respiratory droplets), by contact with a contaminated surface or object, or by ingestion of contaminated food or water

Note: The terms contagious disease and communicable disease are often used interchangeably. However, communicable diseases such as malaria or schistosomiasis that are spread by contact with disease vectors (such as mosquitoes or ticks) are not typically considered to be "contagious" diseases since they cannot be spread from direct contact with another person.

Examples of contagious disease in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Teaching Pandemics Syllabus Readings on the history of quarantine, contagious disease, viruses, infections, and epidemics offer important context for the current coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. —JSTOR Daily, 8 Jan. 2025

By March, the highly contagious disease, which is transmittable by any bodily fluid, had made its way to the capital, Conakry, prompting panic among the city’s two million residents. —Jessica Hatcher, Foreign Affairs, 28 Apr. 2014

Cases of several contagious diseases fell as the pandemic raged and people stayed home to prevent the spread of COVID-19. —Katherine Hignett, Forbes, 18 Dec. 2024

But even as adversaries, the United States and the Soviet Union found ways to cooperate on a number of issues, including space exploration, contagious diseases, the environment, and the global commons. —Kurt M. Campbell, Foreign Affairs, 1 Aug. 2019

Word History

First Known Use

1529, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

contagious disease

noun

: an infectious disease (as influenza, measles, or tuberculosis) that is transmitted by contact with an infected individual or infected bodily discharges or fluids (as respiratory droplets), by contact with a contaminated surface or object, or by ingestion of contaminated food or water

Note: The terms contagious disease and communicable disease are often used interchangeably. However, communicable diseases (as malaria or schistosomiasis) that are spread by contact with disease vectors (as mosquitoes or ticks) are not typically considered to be "contagious" diseases since they cannot be spread from direct contact with another person.