Bubonic

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /bjuːˈbɒnɪk/

Definitions

1. Pertaining to a highly infectious disease caused by Yersinia pestis, which is characterized by severe symptoms such as swollen lymph nodes and fever
2. Relating to a historical and serious form of plague that leads to swollen lymphatic glands and widespread outbreaks among populations
3. Connected with the bubonic plague, which produces swollen lymph nodes and a severe systemic illness

Etymology: Bubonic comes from the Latin "bubo," meaning a swelling in the groin or armpit, and that swelling is the reason the word exists at all. Plague's most visible sign was the inflamed lymph node, and medical writers borrowed the Latin term for it to name the disease that produced such swellings. The Greek "boubōn," meaning groin, is often cited as the root behind the Latin, which fits the word's anatomical origin. The adjective is the simplest part of the story. English took "bubo" and added the suffix "-ic," which denotes "of or relating to," so "bubonic" literally means "relating to the swelling." The suffix passed into English through Old French and Latin "-icus," a route it shares with countless scientific adjectives, but the word itself is a fairly recent coinage built from that Latin noun.