global health alert
- noun
- Formal
- The WHO issued a global health alert after the new virus spread across continents.
Examples
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a global health alert regarding the spread of COVID-19.
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Travelers received a global health alert about rising dengue fever cases worldwide.
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A global health alert was announced in response to the outbreak of Ebola.
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The WHO issued a global health alert last week.
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Are you aware of the global health alert regarding the flu?
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A global health alert was issued to inform citizens about the risks of the Zika virus outbreak.
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In light of recent discoveries, a global health alert was declared to warn countries about potential health threats.
Synonyms
A statement or sign that tells people about danger before it happens
A warning that something dangerous or important may happen
An official warning that tells the public about possible danger or bad weather
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is fully compositional: 'global' specifies worldwide scope, 'health' names the domain, and 'alert' denotes a warning. This straightforward modifier + noun + noun structure directly yields the meaning, and similar constructions exist in many languages, so a B1 learner who knows the words would understand it.
Etymology
Global health alert may come from the clear image of a loud alarm lighting up a world map when a disease spreads. The words global (whole world), health (people's well-being) and alert (a warning) work together to mean an official 'warning' to everyone about a health 'risk', which is why the phrase means an official warning about problems that affect many countries.