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onchocerciasis
noun
called also river blindness
Examples of onchocerciasis in a Sentence
Word History
New Latin Onchocerca, genus of filarial worms (from oncho-, probably erroneously for onco-, from Greek ónkos "barb of an arrow" + -o- -o- + -kerka, feminine of -kerkos "having a tail [of the kind specified]," adjective derivative of kérkos "tail") + -iasis — more at angle entry 2, cercus
Note: The genus Onchocerca was introduced by the Austrian zoologist Karl Moriz Diesing (1800-67) in a brief Latin description of the worm Onchocerca reticulata appended to an article by J. Hermann, "Trichina, bei einem Pferde gefunden," Oesterreichische medicinische Wochenschrift, 1841, no. 9 (February 27), p. 199-200. Diesing's coinage is presumed to mean "hook-tailed," on the assumption that his oncho- is a mistake for onco-, but nothing in the description renders this self-evident. Perhaps the reference is to the spicule (copulatory organ) of the male.
1911, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near onchocerciasis
Cite this Entry
“Onchocerciasis.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/onchocerciasis. Accessed 24 Dec. 2024.
Kids Definition
onchocerciasis
nounMedical Definition
onchocerciasis
nouncalled also onchocercosis, river blindness
see craw-crawMore from Merriam-Webster on onchocerciasis
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about onchocerciasis
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