leprosy
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leprosy
- /ˈlɛpɹəsi/
Where it comes from
From Norman leprosie, from Middle French leprosie (“leprosy & similar skin diseases”), probably from leprous (“leprous”) + -ie (“-y”) but possibly from Medieval Latin leprōsia (leprōsus + -ia) although this only historically attested in reference to leprosariums.
The shift of sense from psoriasis to Hansen's disease occurred in large part from the use of λέπρα (lépra) to translate Hebrew צרעת (“tzaraath”) in the Septuagint and its subsequent use in the New Testament and Late Latin.
noun leprosies
-
An infectious disease caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium leprae, gradually producing nerve damage and patches of skin necrosis and historically handled by permanently quarantining its sufferers.
Then is it surely a leprosy
Similar: Hansensiasis, Hansen's disease, lepra, mesel, measles, elephantiasis, Greek elephantiasis, Greek leprosy, Greek lepra, leprosity, bastard scurvy, leper
- Similar contagious skin diseases causing light patches of scaly skin, particularly psoriasis, syphilis, vitiligo, scabies, and (biblical) the various diseases considered "tzaraath" in the Old Testament.
- Anything considered similarly permanent, harmful, and communicable, particularly when such a thing should be handled by avoidance or isolation of its victims. Sin is a spiritual leprosy.
- Ellipsis of murine leprosy or feline leprosy (“diseases caused in rodents and cats by Mycobacterium lepraemurium”).
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Synonym of mange and glanders in horses.
Similar: mange and glanders in horses
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Synonym of leprosarium: a place for the housing of lepers in isolation from the rest of society.
Similar: leprosarium
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: lepromatous, leper, tuberculoid, disease, histoid, dimorphous, illness, hansen's disease, hansen disease, lepra, tuberculoid leprosy, lepromatous leprosy, leaprosy, leprosity, leproma, leprophobia
Translations
Every language
noun infectious disease caused by M. leprae
| Español | lepra |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 나병 nabyeong |
| 日本語 | ハンセン病 hansenbyō, 癩病 raibyō |
| 中文 | 麻風病 /麻风病 or 痲瘋病 /痳疯病 máfēngbìng, 麻风病 máfēngbìng, 癩病 /癞病 làibìng |
| हिन्दी | कुष्ठ kuṣṭh, कोढ़ koṛh, कुष्ठरोग kuṣṭharog |
| Kiswahili | ukoma |
| Português | lepra |
| Français | lèpre |
| Deutsch | Lepra, Aussatz |
| Italiano | lebbra |
| Ελληνικά | λέπρα lépra |
| Română | lepră |
| Русский | прока́за prokáza, ле́пра lépra |
| Tiếng Việt | phong, cùi, hủi |
| العربية | جُذَام juḏām |
| עברית | צרעת tsara’at |
Talk about this word "leprosy." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/leprosy. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. leprosy. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/leprosy "leprosy." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/leprosy.Cite this
@misc{leprosy_2026,
title = {leprosy},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/leprosy},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
