Infection

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ɪnˈfÉ›kʃən/
• Rhymes: -É›kʃən

Origin

From Old French infeccion, from Late Latin *infectiō.

Full definition of infection

Noun

1. (pathology) The act or process of infecting.
2. An uncontrolled growth of harmful microorganisms in a host.
• 2013-06-01, A better waterworks, An artificial kidney these days still means a refrigerator-sized dialysis machine. Such devices mimic...real kidneys.... But they are nothing like as efficient, and can cause bleeding, clotting and infection—not to mention inconvenience for patients, who typically need to be hooked up to one three times a week for hours at a time.

Related terms

• infect
• infected
• infectable

Derived terms

• spurious infection