trembles
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun 1. A disease of livestock: A specific, often fatal, disease affecting livestock, especially cattle, caused by poisoning from eating certain plants, notably white snakeroot (Ageratina altissima) or rayless goldenrod. The poisoning leads to muscle tremors, weakness, and other neurological symptoms. This is a specialized veterinary and agricultural term.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- The farmer lost three cows to trembles last spring.
- Trembles is also known as "milk sickness" in humans who consume milk from affected animals.
- Preventing cattle from grazing in wooded areas can help avoid trembles.
Advanced Usage
- The term is typically used in its plural form ("trembles") even when referring to the disease as a singular condition. It is often preceded by "the" (e.g., "the trembles").
- Historically, "the trembles" was a common name for what is now more precisely identified as tremetol poisoning.
Variants and Related Words
- Tremble (verb): To shake involuntarily, typically from fear, excitement, or weakness. This is the standard, more common meaning of the word.
- Example: His hands tremble when he's nervous.
- Milk sickness: The human form of the poisoning, historically caused by drinking milk from cows that had eaten white snakeroot.
- Tremor: A slight, involuntary movement or shaking, which is a primary symptom of the disease.
Synonyms
- Milk sickness (specifically for the human illness)
- Tremetol poisoning (the technical term for the toxic cause)
Notes on Different Meanings
It is crucial to distinguish the noun "trembles" (the livestock disease) from the third-person singular present tense of the verb "to tremble". * "Trembles" (noun, disease): The herd was quarantined due to trembles. * "trembles" (verb): She trembles at the thought of public speaking. The context (agricultural/medical vs. general description) almost always makes the intended meaning clear.
Noun
- disease of livestock and especially cattle poisoned by eating certain kinds of snakeroot