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Glite Dictionary
leprous

leprous

2 9.9
Having or looking like a long-lasting skin disease that makes sores and causes loss of feeling
  • adjective
  • /ˈlɛprəs/
translation icon : lepra
  • His back was hunched, and his skin had a rough and leprous appearance.
  • leprous skin
  • leprous appearance
  • leprous hand

Some speculated about their aphrodisiac properties, others voiced concern about their leprous appearance.

Examples

  • As I looked around the room, I saw many blind, broken, and leprous people.

    Blog text (5)

  • Heartsick, the father reaches across the table, then stays his arm, unwilling to touch his son with his leprous hand.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • The land near the village of the old man and the woman had become leprous.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • The four leprous men realized they were dying, in this case not of leprosy but of starvation.

    Blog text (6)

  • They were large, leprous hands, thick with scar tissue and slightly curled.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • The dark stains were blood, long since dried, matting the once-beautiful pelt in a leprous patchwork.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • As I looked around the room, I saw many blind, broken, and leprous people.

  • His back was hunched, and his skin had a rough and leprous appearance.

  • Victims suffered scaling, leprous skin, intestinal distress, lethargy, and depression.

Synonyms

leprose
vsleprous
  • Archaic
9.9

Rough and covered with small scales or powder

refers to actually having the disease rather than just surface texture

Antonyms

healthy
695 1.0

In good body and mind condition without sickness or injury

Compounds

leprous ruin
  • Literature
9.9

An old building that is falling apart with crumbling stones and a sick look

How Diseased

leprous
2 9.9
infected
5 3.3
healthy
695 1.0

Surface Forms

leprous positive

Morphology

leprous = leprosy (transparent) = leprosy + ous

The adjective is a straightforward derivation meaning 'relating to or affected by leprosy', which learners can infer from the noun 'leprosy' plus the adjectival suffix -ous.

Etymology

Leprous comes from the word leprosy, which in turn comes from an old word lepra meaning 'scaly' or 'rough'. So leprous describes something 'like leprosy'—for example skin or a surface that looks unhealthy, scaly, or covered in patches.