pathology
noun
pa·thol·o·gy
| \ pə-ˈthä-lə-jē
\
\
plural pathologies
Definition of pathology
1
: the study of the essential nature of diseases and especially of the structural and functional changes produced by them
studied plant pathology
2
: something abnormal:
a
: the structural and functional deviations from the normal that constitute disease or characterize a particular disease
the pathology of pneumonia
b
: deviation from propriety or from an assumed normal state of something nonliving or nonmaterial
the pathology of wine
c
: deviation giving rise to social ills
connections between these pathologies … and crime— Wendy Kaminer social pathology
Examples of pathology in a Sentence
the pathology of lung diseases
Recent Examples on the Web
Ferguson, a speech pathology student at Cerritos College, was pronounced dead at a hospital. — Jeanette Marantos, Los Angeles Times, "Inglewood man targeted blacks in hate-crime shootings that killed two, D.A. says," 16 Aug. 2019 Understanding the pathologies of the past is surely a prerequisite for negotiating a route to the future. — The Economist, "Church leaders in central and eastern Europe remain surprisingly loth to condemn their old adversary," 11 Aug. 2019 Alaska’s only seed-sorting facility, it’s also home to the state’s plant pathology lab, a seed laboratory, and a potato production and disease monitoring program that creates disease-free seed potatoes. — Zaz Hollander, Anchorage Daily News, "‘I don’t really know what’s left’: Dunleavy budget vetoes raze hemp program, threaten Alaska-grown store produce," 21 July 2019 The pathology of a stroke is deceptively complicated. — Bret Stetka, Scientific American, "New Method for Tackling Stroke Restrains an Overactive Immune System," 2 July 2019 The attraction did not share the news earlier out of respect for mourning the animals and because pathology tests needed to be completed, according to its Facebook page. — Lauren M. Johnson, CNN, "Lightning strike kills two giraffes at a popular Florida attraction," 11 June 2019 Many consider De Sedibus to be the first pathology textbook and Morgagni to be the father of pathologic anatomy. — Maude Campbell, Popular Mechanics, "The Complete History of the Autopsy," 26 Dec. 2018 The particular pathologies of politics in an age of rapid demographic and cultural change are serious and worrying. — Ezra Klein, Vox, "The political tribalism of Andrew Sullivan," 11 Dec. 2018 This means that, unlike some of the other drugs on this list, mood stabilizers affect the actual pathology of the disease instead of only the symptoms, Nassir Ghaemi, M.D., professor of psychiatry at Tufts University School of Medicine, tells SELF. — Korin Miller, SELF, "5 Bipolar Disorder Treatments You Should Know About," 30 Nov. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'pathology.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for pathology
pathology
noun
English Language Learners Definition of pathology
technical
: the study of diseases and of the changes that they cause
: changes in a person, an animal, or a plant that are caused by disease
See the full definition for pathology in the English Language Learners Dictionary
pathology
noun
pa·thol·o·gy
| \ -jē
\
\
plural pathologies
Medical Definition of pathology
1
: the study of the essential nature of diseases and especially of the structural and functional changes produced by them
2
: the anatomic and physiological deviations from the normal that constitute disease or characterize a particular disease
3
: a treatise on or compilation of abnormalities
a new pathology of the eye
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