pneumonia
- 1Inflammation of the lungs caused by infection with viruses, bacteria, or other microorganisms.
She developed pneumonia after a severe bout of the flu and needed several weeks to recover.
Bacterial pneumonia often responds well to a course of antibiotics if treated early.
Note
A Greek lung word in English dress: pneumonía, "lung disease", built on pneúmōn, "lung". Ordinarily it is uncountable (she caught pneumonia), but it takes an article once a particular case or kind is meant. Michael Arlen in 1922 writes of "a vicious pneumonia long ago at school." The plural pneumonias names different types, while pneumoniae and pneumoniæ keep a Latin-style ending.
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Origin
From Ancient Greek πνευμονία (pneumonía, "lung disease"), formed from πνεύμων (pneúmōn, "lung") plus the suffix -ία (-ía).