Definition

Noun: 1. A cutaneous lesion characteristic of bubonic plague: A specific mark, pustule, or discoloration on the skin that is a diagnostic sign of infection with the plague, especially bubonic plague. 2. A source of moral corruption or contagion (figurative, archaic): A place, thing, or person considered to be a center of evil, corruption, or a harmful influence that spreads.

Usage Examples

• Literal Medical Sense:
  • The physician identified the swollen, dark plague spot as a clear indicator of the disease.
  • In historical accounts, the appearance of a plague spot often meant quarantine for the entire household.
• Figurative/Archaic Sense:
  • The corrupt court was described as a plague spot on the nation's integrity.
  • Reformers sought to clean up the plague spots of vice in the city.

Advanced Usage

• The term is now primarily used in historical or literary contexts. Its literal medical use is obsolete, as modern medicine uses more precise terminology (e.g., bubo, lesion).
• The figurative usage employs a metaphor of disease to powerfully condemn something as a source of spreading moral or social decay.

Variants and Related Words

• Plague (n/v): The disease itself; or to pester or cause continual trouble.
• Bubo (n): The specific swollen, inflamed lymph node characteristic of bubonic plague, often in the groin or armpit.
• Pestilence (n): A fatal epidemic disease, especially plague; a pernicious influence.

Synonyms

• Literal: Lesion, sore, mark, pustule, bubo (specific type).
• Figurative: Canker, blight, cesspool, den of iniquity, hotbed (of corruption).

Related Idioms

• A blot on the landscape: Something ugly that spoils the view or the character of a place. (Less severe than "plague spot").
• A den of vice: A place where immoral activities happen. (Similar figurative meaning).
• A nest of corruption: A place where corrupt activities are concentrated. (Similar figurative meaning).

Noun

1. a spot on the skin characteristic of the plague