pathogen
nounUK /ˈpæθədʒən/
US /ˈpæθədʒən/
A tiny living thing that can make you sick.
Washing your hands helps keep pathogens away.
RELATED WORDS
OTHER MEANINGS
2. Any agent, such as a virus, bacterium, or fungus, that causes disease in a host organism.
Scientists study how the pathogen spreads through the population.
3. A disease-causing organism considered in the context of public health and epidemiology.
The lab identified the pathogen responsible for the outbreak.
4. In agriculture, an organism that causes disease in plants or crops.
Farmers use resistant seeds to protect crops from fungal pathogens.