acne
- 1A skin condition, usually affecting the face and common in adolescents, marked by red pimples and caused by inflammation of the sebaceous glands through bacterial infection.
His acne cleared up by the time he finished high school.
Dermatologists often prescribe topical treatments for moderate acne before considering oral medication.
Note
The name came to medicine through New Latin acnē, probably a garbled form of Greek akmē, "point, top." Clinically it is an inflammatory disorder of the pilosebaceous unit, producing comedones, papules and pustules on the face, chest and back. In everyday English it is a mass noun: you have severe or moderate acne, or treat her acne, but never an acne. The plurals acnes and acnae exist and are seldom needed.
- 2
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Origin
From New Latin acnē, probably a corruption of the Ancient Greek word ἀκμή (akmḗ), meaning "point" or "top".