Plague \Plague\, n. [L. plaga a blow, stroke, plague; akin to
Gr. ?, fr. ? to strike; cf. L. plangere to strike, beat. Cf.
Plaint.]
1. That which smites, wounds, or troubles; a blow; a
calamity; any afflictive evil or torment; a great trail or
vexation. --Shak.
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And men blasphemed God for the plague of hail.
--Wyclif.
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The different plague of each calamity. --Shak.
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2. (Med.) An acute malignant contagious fever, that often
prevails in Egypt, Syria, and Turkey, and has at times
visited the large cities of Europe with frightful
mortality; hence, any pestilence; as, the great London
plague. "A plague upon the people fell." --Tennyson.
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Cattle plague. See Rinderpest.
Plague mark, Plague spot, a spot or mark of the plague;
hence, a token of something incurable.
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