English

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Etymology

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So called because it was spread by returning French troops in mediaeval times.

Noun

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French disease (uncountable)

  1. (dated, euphemistic) Syphilis.
    • 2010 November 30, L. McGough, Gender, Sexuality, and Syphilis in Early Modern Venice: The Disease that Came to Stay, Springer, →ISBN, page 88:
      Although the Inquisition trials dealing with the French disease are few in number, the cases provide competing opinions about the cause of illness, thereby providing some insights into how the categories of natural and supernatural []

Translations

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