rheumatism
pronunciation
How to pronounce rheumatism in British English:
UK [ˈru:mətɪzəm]
How to pronounce rheumatism in American English:
US [ˈruməˌtɪzəm]
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- Noun:
- any painful disorder of the joints or muscles or connective tissues
- a chronic autoimmune disease with inflammation of the joints and marked deformities; something (possibly a virus) triggers an attack on the synovium by the immune system, which releases cytokines that stimulate an inflammatory reaction that can lead to
Word Origin
- rheumatism (n.)
- c. 1600, from Late Latin rheumatismus, from Greek rheumatismos, from rheumatizein "suffer from the flux," from rheuma "a discharge from the body" (see rheum). "The meaning of a disease of the joints is first recorded in 1688, because rheumatism was thought to be caused by an excessive flow of rheum into a joint thereby stretching ligaments" [Barnhart].
Example
- 1. Collins suffered from rheumatism , gout and the peculiarly victorian affliction of " nerves " , which led to his over-reliance on laudanum .
- 2. The strain of supplying the war effort eventually took its toll on colt . Suffering from chronic rheumatism , the 47-year-old gun manufacturer died at his home on january 10 , 1862 , leaving behind an estate worth millions .
- 3. The dolphin oil potion , which sells for about $ 25 a small bottle , is used to treat rheumatism , a saleswoman explained .
- 4. Even when he was bent with rheumatism he would not think of moving to a drier spot , but went slowly about his work , milking the cows and collecting the honey and eggs , with the two swans always somewhere close at hand .
- 5. It will contain detailed profiles of 23 plants , including devil 's claw , which is used to treat rheumatism ; red stinkwood , whose bark provides an ingredient for prostate-cancer drugs ; and african ginger , which is good for relieving headaches .