Meanings
plural metapneumoviruses
- Any of a group of viruses (genus Metapneumovirus) responsible for some respiratory infection in humans and birds.
Among them were strains of human respiratory syncytial virus, or HRSV, and of human metapneumovirus, or HMPV, both leading causes of respiratory disease in people.
2008 February 5, Henry Fountain, “Human Viruses Cause Respiratory Outbreaks in Ivory Coast Chimps”, in The New York Times1 more example
Beijing has since acknowledged a surge in cases of the flu-like human metapneumovirus (HMPV), especially among children, and it attributed this to a seasonal spike.
2025 January 7, Kelly Ng, “What you need to know about HMPV”, in BBC
Origin
From the genus name, equivalent to meta- + pneumovirus.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Greek μεταπνευμονοϊός
- μεταπνευμονοϊός (metapnevmonoïós)Translations
Cite this entry
metapneumovirus. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/metapneumovirus
“metapneumovirus.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/metapneumovirus. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “metapneumovirus,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/metapneumovirus.
Source: metapneumovirus on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.