Filariasis

noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Any disease common in tropical and subtropical countries resulting from infestation of the lymphatic system with nematode worms of the superfamily Filarioidea, transmitted by mosquitoes: characterised by inflammation. countable, uncountable
  2. 2
    a disease caused by nematodes in the blood or tissues of the body causing blockage of lymphatic vessels wordnet

Example

More examples

"In the quiet of a courtyard in the northern Nigerian city of Jos, a dozen people sit in a circle on white plastic chairs, talking about their affliction: lymphatic filariasis, an infectious disease also known as elephantiasis."

Etymology

From filaria + -iasis.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.