Whitlow
/ˈʍɪt.loʊ/ name, noun
name, noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An infection near or under the cuticle of a fingernail or toenail.
"'Twas a bad leg allowed me to read the Pilgrim's Progress, and Mark Clark learnt All-Fours in a whitlow."
- 2 a purulent infection at the end of a finger or toe in the area surrounding the nail wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
- 2 A locality in the Gwydir council area, north eastern New South Wales, Australia.
Example
More examples"'Twas a bad leg allowed me to read the Pilgrim's Progress, and Mark Clark learnt All-Fours in a whitlow."
Etymology
From Late Middle English, an alteration of whitflaw, with the first element deriving either from Middle Dutch vijt or Low German fit (“abscess”), borrowed from Latin fīcus (“fig-shaped (ulcer)”), though also influenced by white. The Latin loan also existed in other languages, such as Old English fic (“hemorrhoids”). See flaw.