ENGLISH
REFERENCE

infected

v.
B1 Intermediate US //ˌɪnˈfɛktɪd// UK //ɪnfˈɛktɪd// in·fect·ed

v. to pass a disease or germs to another person, animal, or plant. It can also mean to get a computer virus onto a machine or network.

v. to contaminate a person, organism, or cell with a disease-causing agent; by extension, to introduce malicious software into a computer system. Transitive — requires a direct object.


SIMPLE

The flu virus infected many students at the school.

CONTEXTUAL

Health officials are worried that the new strain of the virus has already infected several people in the city.

COMPLEX

The malware silently infected the entire corporate network by exploiting a vulnerability in an outdated piece of accounting software that had not been patched for months.

Synonyms
Antonyms
Usage

The verb is transitive and often used in the passive voice ('was infected by').

Pitfall

The virus infected to himThe virus infected himInfect is a transitive verb and takes a direct object without the preposition 'to'.

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