virus

noun
UK: /ˈvaɪrəs/
US: /ˈvaɪrəs/

  1. A tiny germ that can make you sick.

    1. I caught a virus, so I stayed home. [ ] [ ]
    2. The rapid spread of the virus caused widespread panic throughout the city. [ ] [ ]

  2. A harmful computer program that can copy itself and stop your computer from working properly.

    1. My computer got a virus and crashed. [ ] [ ]
    2. The software detected a virus attempting to infiltrate the system's core files. [ ] [ ]

Synonyms

bug malware infection
virus transitive-verb

  1. To infect with a computer virus.

    1. Someone tried to virus my computer. [ ] [ ]
    2. Hackers managed to virus several key servers, causing major disruptions. [ ] [ ]

Frequently Asked Questions

The word "virus" in English means: A tiny germ that can make you sick., A harmful computer program that can copy itself and stop your computer from working properly..

The phonetic transcription of "virus" is /ˈvaɪrəs/ in British English and /ˈvaɪrəs/ in American English. Click the 🔊 button to hear both pronunciations.

Synonyms for "virus": bug, malware, infection.

Example usage of "virus": "I caught a virus, so I stayed home.". More examples on the page.