alopecia

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for February 28, 2007 is: alopecia • \al-uh-PEE-shuh\  • noun : loss of hair, wool, or feathers : baldness Examples: My cousin Amelia recently donated ten inches of her hair to an organization that makes wigs for children who suffer from alopecia. Did you know? Doctors use "alopecia" to refer to various forms of hair loss, including "alopecia areata," a sudden loss of hair in patches that involves little or no inflammation. It may surprise you to learn that the word ultimately derives from "alōpēx," the Greek word for "fox," but the connection makes sense if you think of a fox who is afflicted with mange, a disease with symptoms that include, among other things, loss of hair. Middle English speakers borrowed the Latin word "alopecia," which comes from "alōpekia," a Greek term that can be translated as "mange on foxes." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.