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| in·fect [ in fékt ] (past and past participle in·fect·ed, present participle in·fect·ing, 3rd person present singular in·fects) |
transitive verb |
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| Definition: |
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1. cause infection in somebody: to contaminate a person, animal, or organ with a disease-producing agent
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2. cause somebody to have communicable disease: to give a person or animal a communicable disease
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3. enter person or animal: to invade and live in the body of a person or animal
(
refers to microorganisms or endoparasites
)
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4. affect somebody or something adversely: to corrupt or adversely affect somebody or something
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5. influence somebody's feelings: to communicate an emotion such as enthusiasm or fear to somebody
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6. comput contaminate computer: to copy to a computer system a computer virus that is capable of damaging the system's programs or data
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| [14th century. < Latin infect-, past participle of inficere "stain," literally "dip in" < facere "do"] |
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  in·fect·ed adjective |
| in·fec·tor noun |
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