If you have a fever when you are ill, your body temperature is higher than usual and your heart beats faster.
My Uncle Jim had a high fever.
Symptoms of the disease include fever and weight loss.
Synonyms: ague, high temperature, feverishness, pyrexia [medicine] More Synonyms of fever
2. See also hay fever, rheumatic fever, scarlet fever
3. countable noun
A fever is extreme excitement or nervousness about something.
Angie waited in a fever of excitement.
Synonyms: excitement, heat, passion, intensity More Synonyms of fever
fever in British English
(ˈfiːvə)
noun
1.
an abnormally high body temperature, accompanied by a fast pulse rate, dry skin, etc
▶ Related adjectives: febrile, pyretic
2.
any of various diseases, such as yellow fever or scarlet fever, characterized by a high temperature
3.
intense nervous excitement or agitation
she was in a fever about her party
verb
4. (transitive)
to affect with or as if with fever
Derived forms
fevered (ˈfevered)
adjective
feverless (ˈfeverless)
adjective
Word origin
Old English fēfor, from Latin febris
fever in American English
(ˈfivər)
noun
1.
a body temperature that is higher than normal, caused by an infection, ovulation, vigorous exercise, etc.; pyrexia
2.
any of various diseases characterized by a high fever
yellow fever
3.
a condition of nervousness or restless excitement
verb transitive
4.
to cause fever in
Derived forms
fevered (ˈfevered)
adjective
Word origin
ME < OE fefer & OFr fievre, both < L febris < IE base *dhegwh-, to burn > L fovere, to warm, MIr daig, fire
More idioms containing
fever
reach fever pitch
Examples of 'fever' in a sentence
fever
Returning to New York was like coming down with a tropical fever.
Stewart, Michael COMPULSION (2002)
Ah yes, I thought fondly; archaeological fever runs strong in all of us.
Elizabeth Peters HE SHALL THUNDER IN THE SKY (2002)
Quotations
Feed a cold and starve a fever
In other languages
fever
British English: fever /ˈfiːvə/ NOUN
If you have a fever, your temperature is higher than usual because you are ill.
He had a high fever.
American English: fever
Arabic: حُمَّى
Brazilian Portuguese: febre
Chinese: 发烧
Croatian: groznica
Czech: horečka
Danish: feber
Dutch: koorts
European Spanish: fiebre
Finnish: kuume
French: fièvre
German: Fieber
Greek: πυρετός
Italian: febbre
Japanese: 熱
Korean: 열
Norwegian: feber
Polish: gorączka
European Portuguese: febre
Romanian: febră
Russian: лихорадка
Latin American Spanish: fiebre
Swedish: feber
Thai: ไข้
Turkish: ateş sağlık
Ukrainian: гарячка
Vietnamese: cơn sốt
All related terms of 'fever'
Q fever
an acute disease characterized by fever and pneumonia , transmitted to humans by the rickettsia Coxiella burnetii
fog fever
an acute respiratory disease of cattle , with a high mortality , that can occur after grazing fog
hay fever
If someone is suffering from hay fever , they sneeze and their eyes itch , because they are allergic to grass or flowers.
mud fever
a disease of horses characterized by dermatitis in the region of the fetlock
war fever
widespread enthusiasm for going to war
brain fever
inflammation of the brain or its covering membranes
buck fever
nervous excitement felt by inexperienced hunters at the approach of game
cabin fever
acute depression resulting from being isolated or sharing cramped quarters in the wilderness , esp during the long northern winter
fever pitch
If something is at fever pitch , it is in an extremely active or excited state.
fever tree
any of several trees that produce a febrifuge or tonic , esp Pinckneya pubens , a rubiaceous tree of SE North America
gold fever
the extreme excitement and greed caused by a gold rush
jail fever
a former name for typhus , once a common disease in jails
Lassa fever
a serious viral disease of Central West Africa , characterized by high fever and muscular pains
Malta fever
→ undulant fever
marsh fever
→ another name for malaria
milk fever
a fever that sometimes occurs shortly after childbirth , once thought to result from engorgement of the breasts with milk but now thought to be caused by infection
rose fever
a kind of hay fever believed to be caused by the pollen of roses
snail fever
→ schistosomiasis
swamp fever
a viral disease of horses characterized by recurring fever, staggering gait , and general debility
swine fever
an infectious viral disease of pigs , characterized by fever , refusal to eat, weight loss, and diarrhoea
Texas fever
an infectious disease of cattle caused by various sporozoans (genus Babesia ) that invade the red blood cells and are carried by various ticks (esp. genus Boophilus ); babesiosis
tick fever
any acute infectious febrile disease caused by the bite of an infected tick
beaver fever
an infectious disease caused by drinking water that has been contaminated by wildlife
dengue fever
an acute viral disease transmitted by mosquitoes , characterized by headache , fever , pains in the joints , and skin rash
enteric fever
→ typhoid
fever blister
Fever blisters are small sore spots that sometimes appear on or near someone's lips and nose when they have a cold .
fever therapy
a former method of treating disease by raising the body temperature
hectic fever
a fever associated with tuberculosis
jungle fever
a serious malarial fever occurring in the East Indies
miliary fever
an acute infectious fever characterized by profuse sweating and the formation on the skin of minute fluid-filled vesicles
parrot fever
→ psittacosis
rabbit fever
→ tularemia
ratbite fever
acute infectious disease that can be caught from rats
scarlet fever
Scarlet fever is an infectious disease which gives you a painful throat , a high temperature , and red spots on your skin .
spotted fever
any of various severe febrile diseases characterized by small irregular spots on the skin , as in Rocky Mountain spotted fever or tick fever
spring fever
the feeling of restlessness experienced by many people at the onset of spring
trench fever
an acute infectious disease characterized by fever and muscular aches and pains , caused by the microorganism Rickettsia quintana and transmitted by the bite of a body louse
typhoid fever
an acute infectious disease characterized by high fever, rose-coloured spots on the chest or abdomen , abdominal pain, and occasionally intestinal bleeding . It is caused by the bacillus Salmonella typhosa ingested with food or water
typhus fever
any one of a group of acute infectious rickettsial diseases characterized by high fever , skin rash , and severe headache
yellow fever
Yellow fever is a serious infectious disease that people can catch in tropical countries.
aphthous fever
an acute highly infectious viral disease of cattle , pigs , sheep , and goats , characterized by the formation of vesicular eruptions in the mouth and on the feet, esp around the hoofs
breakbone fever
dengue
canicola fever
an acute febrile disease of humans and dogs , characterized by inflammation of the stomach and intestines and by jaundice : caused by a spirochete, Leptospira canicola
childbed fever
a serious , formerly widespread , form of blood poisoning caused by infection contracted during childbirth
glandular fever
Glandular fever is a disease which causes swollen glands , fever, and a sore throat .
puerperal fever
a serious , formerly widespread , form of blood poisoning caused by infection contracted during childbirth
recurrent fever
any of various infectious diseases characterized by recurring fever , caused by the bite of body lice or ticks infected with spirochaetes of the genus Borrelia
relapsing fever
any of various infectious diseases characterized by recurring fever , caused by the bite of body lice or ticks infected with spirochaetes of the genus Borrelia
rheumatic fever
Rheumatic fever is a disease which causes fever, and swelling and pain in your joints.
undulant fever
a persistent form of brucellosis , transmitted to people from lower, esp. domestic , animals, or their products, and characterized by an undulating , or recurrent , fever , sweating , and pains in the joints
Chinese translation of 'fever'
fever
(ˈfiːvəʳ)
n
(c/u) (Med) 发(發)烧(燒) (fāshāo) (次, cì)
(fig, = frenzy)
a fever of excitement/anxiety激动(動)若狂/极(極)度不安 (jīdòng ruò kuáng/jídù bù'ān)
he has a fever他发(發)烧(燒)了 (tā fāshāo le)
1 (noun)
Definition
an abnormally high body temperature, accompanied by a fast pulse rate, shivering, and nausea
Symptoms of the disease include fever and weight loss.
Synonyms
ague
high temperature
feverishness
pyrexia (medicine)
2 (noun)
Definition
intense nervous excitement
I got married in a fever of excitement.
Synonyms
excitement
The audience was in a state of great excitement.
heat
It was all done in the heat of the moment.
passion
Her eyes were blazing with passion.
intensity
His intensity, and the ferocity of his feelings alarmed me.