pathogen
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pathogen
- /ˈpæθəd͡ʒn̩/
Where it comes from
From patho- + -gen. Second element ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- (“lineage”) through Ancient Greek γένος (génos, “birth”)
noun pathogens
-
An agent that can cause disease, especially an infectious microorganism, such as a bacterium, virus, protozoon or fungus.
In his first book since the 2008 essay collection Natural Acts: A Sidelong View of Science and Nature, David Quammen looks at the natural world from yet another angle: the search for the next human pandemic, what epidemiologists call “the next big one.” His quest leads him around the world to study
Similar: infectious agent
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: infectious, virus, pathogenicity, pathogenic, pathogenesis, pathologic, pathological, disease, bioweapon, organism, coevolution, fungal, fungus, mushroom, causative, causal
Translations
Every language
noun any organism or substance that causes disease
| Español | patógeno |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 病原体 byōgentai, 病原菌 byōgenkin |
| 中文 | 病原體 /病原体 bìngyuántǐ |
| हिन्दी | रोगाणु rogāṇu, रोगजनक rogajnak |
| Português | patógeno |
| Français | pathogène |
| Deutsch | Krankheitserreger |
| Italiano | patogeno, agente patogeno |
| Ελληνικά | παθογόνος pathogónos |
| Română | agent patogen |
| Русский | патоге́н patogén |
| Tiếng Việt | mầm bệnh |
| العربية | مسببات الأمراض |
| עברית | פתוגן patogen |
Talk about this word "pathogen." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/pathogen. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. pathogen. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/pathogen "pathogen." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/pathogen.Cite this
@misc{pathogen_2026,
title = {pathogen},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/pathogen},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
