leprosy

Fetched 2026-10-26 (cache).

Synonyms: leprose

Antonyms: leprose

Related words from Datamuse; suggestions, not definitions.

Noun

1. {{senseid|en|Q36956}} {{lb|en|disease|medicine}} An [[infectious]] [[disease]] caused by the [[bacterium]] {{taxfmt|Mycobacterium leprae|species}}, gradually producing [[nerve]] [[damage]] and patches of skin [[necrosis]] and historically handled by permanently [[quarantining]] its sufferers.
2. {{senseid|en|any of various diseases with cutaneous lesions}} {{lb|en|medicine|dated|now|_|usually|_|proscribed}} Similar contagious skin diseases causing light [[patch]]es of [[scaly]] skin, particularly [[psoriasis]], [[syphilis]], [[vitiligo]], [[scabies]], and {{lb|en|biblical}} the [[various]] [[disease]]s [[consider]]ed "[[tzaraath]]" in the [[Old Testament]].
3. {{lb|en|figurative}} Anything considered similarly permanent, harmful, and [[communicable]], particularly when such a thing should be handled by avoidance or [[isolation]] of its [[victim]]s.
4. {{lb|en|veterenary medicine}} A [[contagious]] [[disease]] causing similar effects in animals, particularly
5. {{lb|en|obsolete|rare}} {{synonym of|en|leprosarium}}: a [[place]] for the [[housing]] of [[leper]]s in [[isolation]] from the rest of [[society]].

Source: Wiktionary · CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wiktionary dump) · cached copy, not a rewrite.