common cold
nounDefinition of common cold
: an acute disease of the upper respiratory tract that is marked by inflammation of the mucous membranes of the nose, throat, eyes, and eustachian tubes and by a watery then purulent discharge and is caused by any of several viruses (such as a rhinovirus or an adenovirus)
Examples of common cold in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
One of the most common reasons a parent takes their child to the pediatrician is for symptoms of a common cold. — Anchorage Daily News, "The Kid’s Doctor: Get smart about antibiotics this cold and flu season," 24 July 2019 Early in her tenure, for instance, Dr. Wen directed her staff to add new pages to the Planned Parenthood website about topics like asthma and the common cold — conditions that its clinics do not typically treat. — New York Times, "A Messy Exit Leaves Planned Parenthood at a Philosophical Crossroads," 17 July 2019 The result is a canon of literature dealing with practically every sort of health issue—from the common cold to cancer, pregnancy to old age. — Jani Actman, National Geographic, "How can traditional Chinese medicine threaten wildlife?," 17 June 2019 Although a 2006 study found viruses on almost two-thirds of hand-contact surfaces in a military gym, most were rhinovirus, the main source of the common cold. — Scott Douglas, sun-sentinel.com, "Your gym is teeming with invisible members: Germs. Here’s how to avoid them.," 29 July 2019 Much like your common cold, viral pink eye is incredibly contagious. — Rebecca Dancer, Allure, "What Exactly Is Pink Eye, and How Do You Treat It?," 26 July 2019 Their accomplishment has gained further attention because only this past February the teams also announced a similar discovery about the self-assembly of a virus related to the common cold. — Quanta Magazine, "The Illuminating Geometry of Viruses," 19 July 2017 Then there’s the common cold, which also presents with similar symptoms. — David Biello, Scientific American, "Allergies, Asthma and the Common Cold," 19 May 2014 Another study found that in patients with a common cold, the cold duration was nearly a full day shorter for those patients who gave their doctor a top rating for empathy. — Bram Sable-smith, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "The Madison VA writes the life stories of patients. It changes how doctors interact with them.," 19 June 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'common cold.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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