| Title | elephantiasis |
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Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary el·e·phan·ti·a·sis ETYMOLOGY New Latin, from Latin, a kind of leprosy, from Greek, from elephant-, elephas DATE 1562 1. enlargement and thickening of tissues; specifically : the enormous enlargement of a limb or the scrotum caused by obstruction of lymphatics by filarial worms (especially Wuchereria bancrofti) 2. an undesirable usually enormous growth, enlargement, or overdevelopment elephantiasis of the imagination English Etymology elephantiasis 1581, from Gk. elephantos, gen. of elephas "elephant" + -iasis"pathological or morbid condition." It refers to two diseases, one characterized by thickening of a body part (E. Arabum), the other, older meaning is "disease characterized by skin resembling an elephant's" (E. Græcorum, also called Egyptian leprosy). Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary-牛津双解-OALD7 elephantiasis ele·phant·ia·sis / 7elifEn5taiEsis / noun[U] (medical 医) a condition in which part of the body swells and becomes very large because the lymphatic system is blocked 象皮病(因淋巴系统阻塞而引起的身体肿胀) Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged el·e·phan·ti·a·sis \ˌeləfən.ˈtīəsə̇s, -ˌfan-\ noun (plural elephantia·ses \-īəˌsēz\) Etymology: New Latin, from Latin, a kind of leprosy in which the skin takes on the appearance of an elephant's hide, from Greek, from elephant-, elephas elephant + -iasis — more at elephant 1. : enlargement and thickening of tissues; specifically : the enormous enlargement of a limb or the scrotum resulting from obstruction of lymphatics by filarial worms — compare filariasis 2. : an undesirable enormous growth, enlargement, or overdevelopment < dislikes elephantiasis in labor and in government as much as in industry — Robert Lekachman > < his obsession for self-expression … resulted in verbal elephantiasis — Saturday Review > |
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