English Explanatory Dictionary

symptom

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A perceived change in some function, sensation or appearance of a person that indicates a disease or disorder, such as fever, headache or rash; strictly, a symptom is felt or experienced by the patient, while a sign can be detected by an observer.
  2. A signal; anything that indicates, or is characteristic of, the presence of something else, especially of something undesirable.

Pronunciation

/ˈsɪm(p)təm/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-symptom.wav

Word forms

symptom symptoms

Etymology

From Ancient Greek σύμπτωμα (súmptōma, “a happening, accident, symptom of disease”), from stem of συμπίπτω (sumpíptō, “Ι befall”), from συν- (sun-, “together”) + πίπτω (píptō, “to fall”).

Synonyms

indication manifestation sign signal symptom

Antonyms

Treatment of symptoms versus treatment of cause

Related words

asymptomatic asymptote symptomatic

Derived words

BLIPS cardinal symptom hemisymptom intersymptom monosodium glutamate symptom complex monosymptom MSG symptom complex multisymptom neurosymptom postsymptom Pratt's symptom rational symptom somatic symptom disorder subsymptom symptomatology symptomize symptom journal symptomless symptomlike symptomology Uhthoff's symptom withdrawal symptom
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