chicken pox

Cultural

A mild but highly contagious disease, caused by a virus and characterized by slight fever and the eruption of blisters on the skin. Chicken pox is classified as a disease of childhood, although it can occur in adults.

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Children who have had chicken pox are immune to future infection by the virus that causes it.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“None of them know about the list. They’ve survived things like broken arms and chicken pox and minor car accidents and . . .” Chip gave Jonah a sidelong look, “. . . being adopted.”

From Literature

Mama said something about scarlet fever, Daddy said something else about mumps or chicken pox, Mama was calling the doctor, Daddy was wrapping me up in a blanket and putting me in the truck.

From Literature

It was chicken pox, and before you could say “Speed and Safety Award assembly” there wasn’t anybody left to go to it.

From Literature

"It will also prevent serious consequences if the child does go on to develop chicken pox and it really reduces the likelihood of hospital admission and any other serious consequences," she said.

From BBC

When someone gets chicken pox, usually in childhood, the virus does not fully leave the body.

From Science Daily

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023