Black Death

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Definition

Proper noun A specific, devastating pandemic of bubonic plague that swept through Europe and Asia in the mid-14th century, causing extremely high mortality.

Usage

"Black Death" is used as a proper noun to refer to this singular historical event. It is typically preceded by the definite article "the." * Historians study the social and economic impacts of the Black Death. * The Black Death is believed to have originated in Asia. * Many artworks from the period depict the terror of the Black Death.

Advanced Usage
  • The Black Death can be used metaphorically to describe any catastrophic, widespread disaster, though this is a literary device.
    • The invasive species spread like the Black Death, decimating the local ecosystem.
Variants and Related Words
  • Bubonic plague (noun): The specific bacterial disease caused by , which was the pathogen responsible for the Black Death.
  • Pandemic (noun): A disease outbreak that spreads over a wide geographic area and affects an exceptionally high proportion of the population.
  • Plague (noun): Can refer broadly to any contagious bacterial disease characterized by fever and delirium, or specifically to bubonic plague.
Synonyms
  • The Great Mortality
  • The Pestilence (historical term)
  • The Plague (when used in specific historical context)
Related Phrases
  • To be a black death on... (idiom, rare): To have a severely ruinous or destructive effect on something.
    • The corrupt policy was a black death on the nation's economy.
Noun
  1. the epidemic form of bubonic plague experienced during the Middle Ages when it killed nearly half the people of western Europe

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