tinea pedis
1
5.6
- noun
- /ˈtɪniə ˈpɛdɪs/
- Specialized
- I was diagnosed with tinea pedis after noticing a rash between my toes.
Examples
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Tinea pedis is contagious through direct contact.
Blog text (19) -
tinea pedis.
Blog text (6) -
To prevent tinea pedis, it is important to keep your feet dry and clean.
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Many athletes are concerned about tinea pedis due to the wet conditions in locker rooms.
Synonyms
10
2.9
An infection on the feet, often between the toes, caused by a fungus that makes the skin itch and peel
1
8.6
An infection of the skin or nails that makes round itchy patches
1
9.9
A skin infection caused by a fungus, often in warm, wet areas under clothing
Surface Forms
Morphology
tinea + pedis
The phrase is compositionally interpretable: 'tinea' denotes a fungal infection and 'pedis' is the Latin genitive of 'pes' meaning 'foot', so the compound literally means a fungal infection of the foot (athlete's foot). However, both elements are medical/Latin forms (and 'pedis' is not a standard English word), so the construction is not fully transparent to an average B1 learner without some familiarity with medical/Latin morphology.
Etymology
Tinea pedis comes from old Latin words: tinea meant 'worm' because the skin patches looked like small worms or rings, and pedis meant 'of the foot'. So the name gave a picture of a 'worm on the foot', and today it means a foot fungus called 'athlete's foot'.