leprosy
noun
lep·ro·sy
ˈle-prə-sē 
1
: a chronic infectious disease caused by a mycobacterium (Mycobacterium leprae) affecting especially the skin and peripheral nerves and characterized by the formation of nodules or macules that enlarge and spread accompanied by loss of sensation with eventual paralysis, wasting of muscle, and production of deformities
called also Hansen's disease
2
: a morally or spiritually harmful influence
Examples of leprosy in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The Eugenic Protection Law, in place from 1948 to 1996, allowed authorities to forcibly sterilize people with disabilities, including those with mental disorders, hereditary diseases or physical deformities, and leprosy.
—
Jessie Yeung, CNN, 4 July 2024
The Chemist Whose Work Was Stolen from Her The Black scientist Alice Ball helped develop a treatment for leprosy in the early twentieth century.
—JSTOR Daily, 24 June 2024
Winchester also had a health care center where people with leprosy were cared for.
—Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 May 2024
Ground down by an autocratic and incompetent state, the Chinese had become sick not only morally but also physically: rampant diseases—among them plague, leprosy, tuberculosis, and smallpox—were sapping the people.
—Robert Peckham, Foreign Affairs, 27 Mar. 2020
See all Example Sentences for leprosy 
Jessie Yeung, CNN, 4 July 2024
The Chemist Whose Work Was Stolen from Her The Black scientist Alice Ball helped develop a treatment for leprosy in the early twentieth century.
—JSTOR Daily, 24 June 2024
Winchester also had a health care center where people with leprosy were cared for.
—Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 May 2024
Ground down by an autocratic and incompetent state, the Chinese had become sick not only morally but also physically: rampant diseases—among them plague, leprosy, tuberculosis, and smallpox—were sapping the people.
—Robert Peckham, Foreign Affairs, 27 Mar. 2020
See all Example Sentences for leprosy
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'leprosy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Leprosy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leprosy. Accessed 15 Jul. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
leprosy
noun
lep·ro·sy
ˈlep-rə-sē
: a disease caused by a bacterium and marked by slow-growing spreading swellings accompanied by loss of sensation, wasting away of muscles, and by deformities
called also Hansen's disease
Medical Definition
leprosy
noun
lep·ro·sy
ˈlep-rə-sē
plural leprosies
: a chronic infectious disease that is caused by a mycobacterium (Mycobacterium leprae), affects especially the skin and peripheral nerves, and is characterized by the formation of nodules or macules that enlarge and spread and are accompanied by loss of sensation with eventual paralysis, wasting of muscle, and production of deformities
About 12 million people worldwide have leprosy, a disfiguring, chronic infection that damages nerves, skin, eyes, and mucous membranes.—Harvard Health Letter
Harvard Health LetterThe good news is that leprosy is relatively easy to diagnose and cure. It is caused by the microbe Mycobacterium leprae, which produces telltale symptoms of enlarged nerves and light-coloured patches of numb skin on a patient's face or extremities.—Bryn Nelson, New Scientist
Bryn Nelson, New ScientistLeprosy is actually the least infectious of the major communicable diseases.—Sandra Dallas, Business Week
Sandra Dallas, Business WeekLeprosy … is progressive and causes the growth of widely distributed lumps on the skin and thickening of the skin and nerves. Severe cases are characterized by muscle weakness and paralysis.—Insight
Insightcalled also hansenosis, Hansen's disease, lepra
see lepromatous leprosy, tuberculoid leprosyLove words? Need even more definitions?
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