French disease
- noun
- Offensive
:
mal francés
- Historical texts reveal that the French disease spread rapidly among soldiers during the wars of the period.
Examples
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In the 18th century, syphilis was often referred to as the French disease in Europe, highlighting its stigma.
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Many people used to avoid discussing syphilis openly, instead calling it the French disease to soften the topic.
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"May you catch the French disease and your member turn green and fall off," Fulmar said.
Fiction book (2000) -
Anti-Americanism is a French disease.
Blog text (28)
Synonyms
45
4.8
An infection you can catch by sex, caused by bacteria, that can harm you and your baby if not treated
1
9.9
An infection you can catch during sex that can cause serious health problems
An old name for syphilis, a disease you get by sex
A serious disease spread by sex that causes long-term health problems
A sexually transmitted infection caused by bacteria that can damage many body parts and pass from mother to baby
An infection caught during sex, especially syphilis
Surface Forms
Morphology
The constituents 'French' + 'disease' transparently indicate an illness associated with France, so a B1 learner would grasp that it names some disease. However, the specific reference to syphilis is a historical euphemism requiring cultural/historical knowledge, so the exact meaning is not fully predictable from the parts alone.
Etymology
French disease comes from a time when a new sickness spread across Europe and people blamed other countries by naming the illness after them. Many people called the illness the French disease, so the phrase came to mean 'syphilis'.