1
as in infectious
capable of being passed by physical contact from one person to another
chicken pox, measles, German measles, and other contagious diseases
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2
as in spreading
exciting a similar feeling or reaction in others
the enthusiasm of the new club members was contagious
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Recent Examples of contagious
Measles, a highly contagious respiratory virus, can survive in the air for up to two hours, and 9 out of 10 unvaccinated individuals exposed to it will contract the virus.
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Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 6 Mar. 2025
Countries with long land borders faced much greater challenges: China was able to keep COVID-19 largely at bay for over two years but was ultimately overwhelmed by the more contagious Omicron variant.
—Edward Alden, Foreign Affairs, 6 Mar. 2025
Driving the news: Texas is home to the largest outbreak of the disease in the last 30 years and the first death in a decade from the highly contagious illness.
—Kristal Dixon, Axios, 5 Mar. 2025
The child who died Tuesday night in the outbreak is the first U.S. death from the highly contagious but preventable respiratory disease since 2015, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 1 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for contagious
Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 6 Mar. 2025
Countries with long land borders faced much greater challenges: China was able to keep COVID-19 largely at bay for over two years but was ultimately overwhelmed by the more contagious Omicron variant.
—Edward Alden, Foreign Affairs, 6 Mar. 2025
Driving the news: Texas is home to the largest outbreak of the disease in the last 30 years and the first death in a decade from the highly contagious illness.
—Kristal Dixon, Axios, 5 Mar. 2025
The child who died Tuesday night in the outbreak is the first U.S. death from the highly contagious but preventable respiratory disease since 2015, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 1 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for contagious
Cite this Entry
“Contagious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/contagious. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.
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