pandemic
Pluralpandemics
Pluralpandemics
- 1A disease that spreads across many countries and infects a very large number of people.
Like a fire that jumps from town to town until it covers a whole country.
The pandemic forced schools to close their doors for months.
Doctors feared the new virus could grow into a pandemic.
Note
- 2Describing a disease that has spread across many countries and infected very many people.
Doctors feared the flu might turn pandemic by winter.
A pandemic illness can overwhelm hospitals in many countries at once.
Similarglobal, worldwide, widespread
Note
- 3The worldwide spread of COVID-19 that began in 2019.
During the pandemic, we learned to work from home.
The pandemic changed how people shopped for groceries.
- 4So widespread that it feels like a spreading disease, used in a disapproving way.
Like weeds spreading through every garden until they take over.
Cheating became almost pandemic in that league.
Corruption was pandemic across the whole department.
Similarwidespread, common, universal, pervasive, prevalent
Oppositerare, uncommon, isolated
Note
Less common meaning
Showing meanings only.
Practice
Can you tell the meanings of pandemic apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.
Origin
From Greek pándēmos, meaning "of all the people" or "public," plus the English ending -ic.