# mellitus

/ˈmɛɫɪtəs/ (US) · CEFR C1 · Noun

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/mellitus
Updated: 2026-05-26

## Definition

a medical name for diabetes. It is a Latin word that means 'sweet' and is used in the full name of the disease.

For teachers: a Latin term meaning 'sweet', used in the medical nomenclature of diabetes. It appears in the full name of the condition, diabetes mellitus, to distinguish it from diabetes insipidus.

## Examples

- The doctor explained that diabetes mellitus is a common health condition.
- In medical literature, the term diabetes mellitus is used to describe the metabolic disorder characterized by high blood sugar levels.
- While the term diabetes mellitus is widely recognized in clinical settings, it is often simplified to diabetes in everyday conversation to avoid the technical complexity of the Latin suffix.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.