Meaning & use

plague

noun·Academic

A deadly, fast-spreading infectious disease, or an overwhelming and troublesome abundance of something.

See it in a sentence

The plague killed millions of people across Europe during the fourteenth century.

A plague of locusts destroyed the farmers' entire crop within days.

A note on using this word

Capitalized as the Plague or Black Death, it refers to a specific historical pandemic caused by a bacterium.

Words with a similar meaning

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Another way to use it

2. verb

To cause repeated trouble or distress to someone over a long period.

Doubts about her decision continued to plague her for months afterward.

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