Wuhan virus

noun, slang

noun, slang ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Synonym of coronavirus, the disease COVID-19. colloquial, derogatory, offensive, sometimes, uncountable

    "This new “Wuhan virus” outbreak in China, which appears to be due to a novel coronavirus, is another warning to us about the need for more research in infectious diseases, epidemiology and control measures."

  2. 2
    a viral disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 that caused a global pandemic in 2020 wordnet
  3. 3
    Synonym of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. colloquial, derogatory, offensive, sometimes, uncountable

    "We designed candidate diagnostic RT-PCR assays before release of the first sequence of the Wuhan virus."

  4. 4
    Synonym of A/Wuhan/359/95, a strain of H3N2 influenza. uncommon, uncountable

Synonyms

All synonyms
2019-ncov acute respiratory diseasecoronacoronaviruscoronavirus disease 2019covid-19novel coronavirus pneumonia

Example

More examples

"This new “Wuhan virus” outbreak in China, which appears to be due to a novel coronavirus, is another warning to us about the need for more research in infectious diseases, epidemiology and control measures."

Etymology

From Wuhan + virus, q.v., from its presumed origin in Wuhan, China, in late 2019. The same name was separately and less prominently used in 1995 for a strain of H3N2 flu.

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