delta variant

US/ˈdɛltə ˈvæɹiənt/UK/ˈdɛltə ˈvɛəɹiənt/

noun

The highly virulent B.1.617.2 strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.

Similar
deltadelta straindouble mutant straindouble mutant variantdouble mutation straindouble mutation variantIndian strainIndian variant

Meanings

delta variant1

noun
  1. Alternative letter-case form of Delta variant.

Delta variant2

noun

alternative delta variant · alternative Delta Variant · alternative δ variant · alternative δ-variant · alternative Δ variant · alternative Δ-variant

  1. The highly virulent B.1.617.2 strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.

    Studies of mRNA and vector-based vaccines used in different countries report acceptable levels of effectiveness against SARS-CoV-2 infection caused by the Delta variants of SARS-CoV-2

    2022 September 22, Anton Barchuk, Anna Bulina, Mikhail Cherkashin, Natalia Berezina, Tatyana Rakova, Darya Kuplevatskaya, Oksana Stanevich, Dmitriy Skougarevskiy, Artemiy Okhotin, “COVID-19 vaccines effectiveness against symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 during Delta variant surge”, in BMC Public Health, →DOI, page 1
    2 more examples

    If no new cases come from the Buff Club exposure site, it will be hard to believe politicians scaremongering that the delta variant is so infectious that all you have to do is walk past an infected person to get it.

    2021 July 2, The NT News, Darwin, page 23, column 2

    Unlike other SARS-CoV-2 variants, the Delta variant can attach to copies of itself, forming larger aggregations, or clumps, of viral particles, suggests a study by scientists at the National Institutes of Health.

    2022 June 25, “Unique Binding Ability of Delta Variant”, in USA Today, page 6

    Synonyms: delta, Delta, delta strain, Delta strain, Delta Strain, double mutant strain, double mutant variant, double mutation strain

Synonyms & antonyms

nounThe highly virulent B.1.617.2 strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.

Similar
deltaDeltadelta strainDelta strainDelta Straindouble mutant straindouble mutant variantdouble mutation straindouble mutation variantIndian strainIndian variantIndia strainIndia variant
Also see

Translations

Chinese Mandarin 德爾塔毒株 /德尔塔毒株, 德尔塔毒株
  • 德爾塔毒株 /德尔塔毒株 (dé'ěrtǎ dúzhū)strain of the COVID-19 virus
  • 德尔塔毒株 (dé'ěrtǎ dúzhū)strain of the COVID-19 virus
Finnish deltamuunnos
  • deltamuunnosstrain of the COVID-19 virus
French variant delta
  • variant deltastrain of the COVID-19 virus
German Delta-Variante
  • Delta-Variantestrain of the COVID-19 virus
Japanese デルタ株
  • デルタ株 (deruta kabu)strain of the COVID-19 virus
Korean 델타 변이
  • 델타 변이 (delta byeoni)strain of the COVID-19 virus
Portuguese variante delta
  • variante deltastrain of the COVID-19 virus
Spanish variante delta
  • variante deltastrain of the COVID-19 virus
Cite this entry
APA

delta variant. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/delta%20variant

MLA

“delta variant.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/delta%20variant. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “delta variant,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/delta%20variant.

Source: delta variant on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.