Phrase guide

cat scratch disease

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A relatively benign disease, characterized by swollen lymph nodes, caused by the bacterium Bartonella henselae normally carried by the cat flea Ctenocephalides felis.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

Topics: medicine, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: CSD, cat scratch fever, cat-scratch fever, felinosis, inoculation lymphoreticulosis, subacute regional lymphadenitis, Teeny's disease

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: disease, fever

2

noun

Meaning 2

a disease thought to be transmitted to humans by a scratch from a cat

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: disease

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

5 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 貓抓病 /猫抓病 (māozhuābìng) — benign disease
  • Dutch: kattenkrabziekte — benign disease
  • Finnish: kissanraapimatauti — benign disease
  • German: Katzenkratzkrankheit — benign disease
  • Japanese: 猫ひっかき病 (nekohikkakibyō) — benign disease