virus
n.-
1 biological germ (n.) A2 Elementary Sciencea tiny living thing that enters your body and can make you sick.
a submicroscopic infectious agent that replicates only inside the living cells of an organism.
ExampleThe doctor said my sore throat was caused by a common virus.
ExampleResearchers are studying how the virus mutates when it moves from animal hosts to human populations.
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2 illness (n.) B1 Intermediate Informal Medicinea sickness or infection caused by a virus.
an illness or medical condition resulting from a viral infection.
ExampleI missed three days of work because of a stomach virus.
ExampleThe school reported a high number of absences this week due to a seasonal respiratory virus circulating among the students.
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3 malicious software (n.) B1 Intermediate Computinga harmful computer program that can copy itself and damage your files.
a piece of code which is capable of copying itself and typically has a detrimental effect, such as corrupting the system or destroying data.
ExampleNever click on suspicious links or you might get a virus on your laptop.
ExampleThe company's security software detected a sophisticated virus that was attempting to encrypt sensitive financial records.
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4 harmful influence (n.) C1 Advanced Literarysomething bad or dangerous that spreads quickly from person to person.
a harmful or corrupting influence that spreads rapidly within a group or society.
ExampleHatred can spread like a virus through a community.
ExampleThe orator warned that misinformation was a virus threatening the very foundations of their democratic institutions.
From Middle English virus, from Latin vīrus (“poison, slime, venom”), via rhotacism from Proto-Italic weizos, from Proto-Indo-European wisós (“fluidity, slime, poison”). First use in the computer context by David Gerrold in his 1972 book When HARLIE Was One.