phthisis
- noun
- /ˈθɪsɪs/
- Archaic
:
tisis
- If fluid reaches the lung, we may expect apostema and phthisis; in the joints, we anticipate rheumatism and gout; in the legs, ulceration and decay.
Examples
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In doing so, they focused their attention on the disease called phthisis or consumption, the chronic lung disease that was the most common cause of death in the United States and Europe.
Academic text (2015) -
Many people in the 19th century suffered from phthisis, a serious lung disease also known as consumption.
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The doctor explained that phthisis was a debilitating condition that caused severe weight loss and weakness.
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Before antibiotics were discovered, phthisis was often fatal, claiming countless lives every year.
Synonyms
50
3.7
A serious disease that spreads between people and usually affects the lungs, causing fever and coughing
47
3.2
A serious disease that usually affects the lungs but can also affect other body parts
12
9.9
A lung disease that slowly makes the body thin and weak
4
7.3
A disease that makes a person lose weight and become weak, often affecting the lungs
1
9.9
A lung disease that makes the body thin and often causes death
1
4.9
A serious lung disease that causes a long cough and makes you lose weight
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Etymology
The word phthisis comes from the Greek verb phthínein, which means 'to waste away', and it was the old medical name for 'consumption' or 'tuberculosis'. So the name points to the disease's main effect: the body becoming very thin and weak.