pox
UK[pɒks]US[pɑːks]
n
Any disease that causes skin eruptions or pustules, such as smallpox or chickenpox.
n
(archaic) Syphilis.
Etymology
The word 'pox' has a direct and imitative origin in the English language. It emerged in the late 15th century as an alteration of the plural form 'pocks', which itself comes from the Old English word 'pocc', meaning a pustule or blister. The change in spelling to 'pox' was likely influenced by the similar-sounding word 'box', and it served as a euphemistic shortening for the dreaded disease 'smallpox'. Over time, its meaning generalized to refer to other diseases characterized by skin lesions, and it was also used colloquially in curses, as in "a pox on you."
Analysis
This word is a simplex. It is a variant spelling of 'pocks', the plural of 'pock', which is a native English word.
Examples
Before the vaccine was developed, smallpox was a devastating pox that killed millions.
The child was covered in spots from the chicken pox.
(Archaic) He was said to have died of the pox.