Definition of PESTIFEROUS

pestiferous

Meanings

Adjective Satellite

  • contaminated with infecting organisms; ; - Jane Austen
  • likely to spread and cause an epidemic disease; - Jonathan Swift
  • tending to corrupt or pervert
  • causing irritation or annoyance

Adj

  • containing organisms that cause contagious diseases
  • annoying, vexatious

Origin / Etymology

Mid 15th century, in sense “mischievous, pernicious”, from Latin pestiferus (“bearing plague”), from pestifer, from pestis (“plague”) + ferre (“carry”) (see infer).
By surface analysis, pest + -i- (“bearing, carrying”) + -ferous.

Scrabble Score: 16

pestiferous is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
pestiferous is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
pestiferous is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 18

pestiferous is a valid Words With Friends word