FLU

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does flu mean? 

• FLU (noun)
  The noun FLU has 1 sense:

1. an acute febrile highly contagious viral disease

  Familiarity information: FLU used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• FLU (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

An acute febrile highly contagious viral disease

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Synonyms:

flu; grippe; influenza

Hypernyms ("flu" is a kind of...):

contagion; contagious disease (any disease easily transmitted by contact)

respiratory disease; respiratory disorder; respiratory illness (a disease affecting the respiratory system)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "flu"):

Asian influenza; Asiatic flu (influenza caused by the Asian virus that was first isolated in 1957)

swine flu; swine influenza (an acute and highly contagious respiratory disease of swine caused by the orthomyxovirus thought to be the same virus that caused the 1918 influenza pandemic)

 Context examples 

The first case of a bird flu virus infecting a person directly, H5N1, was in Hong Kong in 1997.

(Bird Flu, NIH)

Many things can cause asthma, including: • Allergens - mold, pollen, animals • Irritants - cigarette smoke, air pollution • Weather - cold air, changes in weather • Exercise • Infections - flu, common cold

(Asthma in Children, NIH)

Comtrex preparations are used to relieve symptoms of cold, cough and flu.

(Comtrex, NCI Thesaurus)

Is it a cold or the flu?

(Flu, NIH: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)

A commercial combination preparation, by Vicks, containing acetaminophen, dextromethorphan hydrobromide and doxylamine succinate used to relieve symptoms of cold and flu.

(Nyquil, NCI Thesaurus)

You may feel pain in one area of your body, such as your back, abdomen or chest or you may feel pain all over, such as when your muscles ache from the flu.

(Pain, NIH)

If you have a cold or the flu, antihistamines may work better than non-prescription cough medicines.

(Cough, NIH)

A cough and cold preparation is usually administered orally to relieve symptoms of the cold, flu or allergy, such as cough, congestion, itchy, watery eyes, runny nose, sore throat and fever.

(Cough and Cold Preparation, NCI Thesaurus)

The same viruses that cause colds and the flu often cause acute bronchitis.

(Acute Bronchitis, NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)

The study team has explored immune responses to two influenza surface proteins: HA—the main target of traditional seasonal flu vaccines—and neuraminidase (NA).

(Flu infection study increases understanding of natural immunity, National Institutes of Health)