foodborne

F4O1O1D2B3O1R1N1E1

adjective

Transmitted through food.

“Many people become ill by ingesting foodborne bacteria.”

OriginEnglish borne ← Middle English boren /iborne ← Old English (ġe)boren →
Less commonScrabble 15
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Meanings

adjectivefoodborne (not comparable)

alternative food-borne

  1. not comparableTransmitted through food.

    Many people become ill by ingesting foodborne bacteria.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*peh₂-
  2. Proto-Germanic*fōdô
  3. Old Englishfōda
  4. Middle Englishfode
  5. Englishfood
  6. Proto-Indo-European*bʰer-
  7. Proto-Indo-European*bʰéreti
  8. Proto-Germanic*beraną
  9. Proto-West Germanic*beran
  10. Old Englishberan
  11. Old English(ġe)boren
  12. Middle Englishboren /iborne
  13. Englishborne
  14. Englishfoodborne

From food + -borne.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

foodborne. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/foodborne

MLA

“foodborne.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/foodborne. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “foodborne,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/foodborne.

Source: foodborne on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.