MYOSIS (myoses)

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected form: myoses   

 Dictionary entry overview: What does myosis mean? 

• MYOSIS (noun)
  The noun MYOSIS has 2 senses:

1. an acute infectious disease occurring in epidemic form and featuring paroxysms of pain (usually in the chest)

2. reflex contraction of the sphincter muscle of the iris in response to a bright light (or certain drugs) causing the pupil to become smaller

  Familiarity information: MYOSIS used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• MYOSIS (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

An acute infectious disease occurring in epidemic form and featuring paroxysms of pain (usually in the chest)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Synonyms:

Bornholm disease; diaphragmatic pleurisy; epidemic myalgia; epidemic pleurodynia; myosis

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

epidemic disease (any infectious disease that develops and spreads rapidly to many people)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Reflex contraction of the sphincter muscle of the iris in response to a bright light (or certain drugs) causing the pupil to become smaller

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

light reflex; miosis; myosis; pupillary reflex

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

inborn reflex; innate reflex; instinctive reflex; physiological reaction; reflex; reflex action; reflex response; unconditioned reflex (an automatic instinctive unlearned reaction to a stimulus)

Derivation:

myotic (of or relating to or causing constriction of the pupil of the eye)