sarcoid

noun

sar·​coid ˈsär-ˌkȯid How to pronounce sarcoid (audio)
1
: any of various diseases characterized especially by the formation of nodules in the skin
2
: a nodule characteristic of sarcoid or of sarcoidosis

Word History

Etymology

earlier sarkoid, probably borrowed from German Sarcoid, derivative of sarcoid, adjective, "fleshy, fleshlike," borrowed from Greek sarkoeidḗs, from sark-, sárx "flesh" + -oeidēs -oid entry 2 — more at sarco-

Note: Introduced as a name for a skin condition by the Norwegian dermatologist Cæsar Peter Møller Boeck (1845-1917) in "Multiple benign sarkoid of the skin," Journal of Cutaneous and Genito-Urinary Diseases, vol. 17, no. 12 (December, 1899), pp. 543-50. Boeck states that the name had been used earlier for a form of sarcomatosis by the dermatologist Max Joseph, in Band 46 (1898) of the Archiv für Dermatologie und Syphilis, but in this journal Joseph uses only the adjective sarcoide.

First Known Use

1899, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of sarcoid was in 1899

Dictionary Entries Near sarcoid

sarcoglia

sarcoid

sarcoidosis

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Sarcoid.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sarcoid. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.

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Medical Definition

sarcoid

1 of 2 adjective
sar·​coid ˈsär-ˌkȯid How to pronounce sarcoid (audio)
: of, relating to, resembling, or being sarcoid or sarcoidosis
sarcoid fibroblastic tissue

sarcoid

2 of 2 noun
1
: any of various diseases characterized especially by the formation of nodules in the skin
2
: a nodule characteristic of sarcoid or of sarcoidosis
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