chickenpox

[chik-uh n-poks] /ˈtʃɪk ənˌpɒks/
noun
1.
a disease, commonly of children, caused by the varicella zoster virus and characterized by mild headache and fever, malaise, and eruption of blisters on the skin and mucous membranes.
Also, chicken pox.
Also called varicella.
Origin
1720-30
Examples from the web for chicken pox
  • One of the myths about inoculation was that it did not produce a true smallpox in the patient but a spurious case of chicken pox.
  • Unlike many viral ailments such as chicken pox, dengue infection fails to ensure immunity from subsequent attacks.
  • After the rash of chicken pox goes away, the virus stays in the body.
  • Buyer's remorse is as common as chicken pox in kids.
  • The same virus that causes chicken pox also causes shingles.
  • However, not everyone who had chicken pox will develop shingles.
  • The varicella vaccine offers protection from the chicken pox virus.
British Dictionary definitions for chicken pox

chickenpox

/ˈtʃɪkɪnˌpɒks/
noun
1.
a highly communicable viral disease most commonly affecting children, characterized by slight fever and the eruption of a rash
Word Origin and History for chicken pox
n.

c.1730, from chicken (n.) + pox. Perhaps so called for its mildness compared to smallpox [Barnhart].

chicken pox in Medicine

chickenpox or chicken pox
n.
An acute contagious disease, primarily of children, that is caused by the varicella-zoster virus and characterized by skin eruptions, slight fever, and malaise. Also called varicella.

chicken pox in Science
chickenpox
  (chĭk'ən-pŏks')   
A highly contagious infectious disease, usually of children, caused by the varicella-zoster virus of the genus Varicellavirus. The infection is characterized by fever, and itching skin blisters that start on the trunk of the body and spread to the extremities. Also called varicella.
chicken pox in Culture

chicken pox definition


A mild but highly contagious disease, caused by a virus and characterized by slight fever and the eruption of blisters on the skin. Chicken pox is classified as a disease of childhood, although it can occur in adults.

Note: Children who have had chicken pox are immune to future infection by the virus that causes it.