Link Centre Dictionary

endemic

en·de·mic

US/ɛnˈdɛm.ɪk/ rare
adjective (3) noun (2)

adjective

1.

of or relating to a disease (or anything resembling a disease) constantly present to greater or lesser extent in a particular locality

  • “diseases endemic to the tropics”
  • “endemic malaria”
  • “food shortages and starvation are endemic in certain parts of the world”
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2.

native to or confined to a certain region

  • “the islands have a number of interesting endemic species”
Antonyms
3.

originating where it is found

  • “the autochthonal fauna of Australia includes the kangaroo”
  • “autochthonous rocks and people and folktales”
  • “endemic folkways”
  • “the Ainu are indigenous to the northernmost islands of Japan”
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noun

1.
2.

a plant that is native to a certain limited area

  • “it is an endemic found only this island”

Origin

From Ancient Greek ἐν (en, “in”) + δῆμος (dêmos, “people”) + -ic. Possibly via Ancient Greek ἔνδημος (éndēmos, “among one's people, at home, native”) and/or French endémique. By surface analysis, en- + demic.

Phrases

  • Balkan endemic nephropathy

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.