contagious

[kuh n-tey-juh s] /kənˈteɪ dʒəs/

adjective

capable of being transmitted by bodily contact with an infected person or object:

contagious diseases.

carrying or spreading a contagious disease.

tending to spread from person to person:

contagious laughter.

Origin

1350-1400; Middle English < Late Latin contāgiōsus, equivalent to contāgi(ō) contagion + -ōsus -ous

Related forms

contagiously, adverb

contagiousness, contagiosity

[kuh n-tey-jee-os-i-tee] /kənˌteɪ dʒiˈɒs ɪ ti/ (Show IPA), noun

anticontagious, adjective

anticontagiously, adverb

anticontagiousness, noun

noncontagious, adjective

noncontagiously, adverb

noncontagiousness, noun

uncontagious, adjective

uncontagiously, adverb

Can be confused

contagious, infectious (see synonym study at the current entry)

Synonyms

1. Contagious, infectious are usually distinguished in technical medical use. Contagious, literally “communicable by contact,” describes a very easily transmitted disease as influenza or the common cold. Infectious refers to a disease involving a microorganism that can be transmitted from one person to another only by a specific kind of contact; venereal diseases are usually infectious. In nontechnical senses, contagious emphasizes the rapidity with which something spreads: Contagious laughter ran through the hall. Infectious suggests the pleasantly irresistible quality of something: Her infectious good humor made her a popular guest.

Examples from the web for contagious

The specter of a highly contagious and deadly influenza is alarming indeed.
She said this to me with a serious expression, as if she were talking about a ghost or someone with a contagious disease.
His halting speech was itself a kind of laughter, not fully intelligible yet contagious.
Foot-and-mouth is explosively contagious, although it rarely affects humans and isn't usually fatal to adult livestock.
Pertussis, known commonly as whooping cough, is a highly contagious disease.
Also, the virus must be highly contagious for a pandemic to occur.
Wealth made from flipping offerings proved to be contagious, particularly given the lack of alternatives.
The euphoria of the electorate is contagious, but in one sense the vote is the easiest part of the process of statehood.
She was so desperately unhappy that her gloom was contagious.
Furthermore, it was sustained, and it turned out to be contagious.

British Dictionary definitions for contagious

contagious

/kənˈteɪdʒəs/

adjective

(of a disease) capable of being passed on by direct contact with a diseased individual or by handling clothing, etc, contaminated with the causative agent Compare infectious

(of an organism) harbouring or spreading the causative agent of a transmissible disease

causing or likely to cause the same reaction or emotion in several people; catching; infectious: her laughter was contagious

Derived Forms

contagiously, adverb
contagiousness, noun

Word Origin and History for contagious

adj.

late 14c., from Old French contagieus (Modern French contagieux), from Late Latin contagiosus, from Latin contagio (see contact (n.)).

contagious in Medicine

contagious con·ta·gious (kən-tā'jəs)
adj.

Of or relating to contagion.
Transmissible by direct or indirect contact; communicable.
Capable of transmitting disease; carrying a disease.

con·ta'gious·ness n.

contagious in Science

contagious

(kən-tā'jəs)

Capable of being transmitted by direct or indirect contact, as an infectious disease.
Bearing contagion, as a person or animal with an infectious disease that is contagious.

Our Living Language : A contagious disease is one that can be transmitted from one living being to another through direct or indirect contact. Thus the flu, which can be transmitted by coughing, and cholera, which is often acquired by drinking contaminated water, are contagious diseases. Although infectious is also used to refer to such diseases, it has a slightly different meaning in that it refers to diseases caused by infectious agents—agents such as viruses and bacteria that are not normally present in the body and can cause an infection. While the notion of contagiousness goes back to ancient times, the idea of infectious diseases is more modern, coming from the germ theory of disease, which was not proposed until the later nineteenth century. Contagious and infectious are also used to refer to people who have communicable diseases at a stage at which transmission to others is likely.