bug

noun

/bʌɡ/

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[countable] (especially North American English) any small insect
- There's a bug crawling up your arm.
Topics Insects, worms, etc.b2
[countable] (informal) an illness that is usually fairly mild but spreads easily from person to person
- a flu bug
- There's a stomach bug going round (= people are catching it from each other).
- I picked up a bug in the office.
- He's off work with a flu bug.
Synonyms disease
disease
- illness
- disorder
- infection
- condition
- ailment
- bug
These are all words for a medical problem.
- disease a medical problem affecting humans, animals or plants, often caused by infection:
  He suffers from a rare blood disease.
- illness a medical problem, or a period of suffering from one:
  She died after a long illness.
disease or illness?Disease is used to talk about more severe physical medical problems, especially those that affect the organs. Illness is used to talk about both more severe and more minor medical problems, and those that affect mental health: heart/kidney/liver illness • mental disease. Disease is not used about a period of illness: She died after a long disease.
- disorder (rather formal) an illness that causes a part of the body to stop functioning correctly:
  a rare disorder of the liver.
  A disorder is generally not infectious. Disorder is used most frequently with words relating to mental problems, for example psychiatric, personality, mental and eating. When it is used to talk about physical problems, it is most often used with blood, bowel and kidney, and these are commonly serious, severe or rare.
- infection an illness that is caused by bacteria or a virus and that affects one part of the body:
  a throat infection
- condition a medical problem that you have for a long time because it is not possible to cure it:
  a heart condition
- ailment (rather formal) an illness that is not very serious:
  childhood ailments
- bug (informal) an infectious illness that is usually fairly mild:
  a nasty flu bug
Patterns
- to have/suffer from a(n) disease/illness/disorder/infection/condition/ailment/bug
- to catch/contract/get/pick up a(n) disease/illness/infection/bug
Collocations Illnesses
IllnessesBecoming ill
- catch a cold/an infectious disease/the flu/(British English) flu/pneumonia/a virus/(informal) a bug
- get (British English) ill/(North American English) sick/a disease/AIDS/breast cancer/a cold/the flu/(British English) flu/a migraine
- come down with a cold/the flu/(British English) flu
- contract a deadly disease/a serious illness/HIV/AIDS
- be infected with a virus/a parasite/HIV
- develop cancer/diabetes/a rash/an ulcer/symptoms of hepatitis
- have a heart attack/a stroke
- provoke/trigger/produce an allergic reaction
- block/burst/rupture a blood vessel
- damage/sever a nerve/an artery/a tendon
Being ill
- feel (British English) ill/nauseous/queasy
- be running (British English) a temperature/(North American English) a fever
- have a head cold/diabetes/heart disease/lung cancer/a headache/(British English) a high temperature/(North American English) a fever
- suffer from asthma/malnutrition/frequent headaches/bouts of depression/a mental disorder
- be laid up with/ (British English) be in bed with a cold/the flu/(British English) flu/a migraine
- nurse a cold/a headache/a hangover
- battle/fight cancer/depression/addiction/alcoholism
Treatments
- examine a patient
- diagnose a condition/disease/disorder
- be diagnosed with cancer/diabetes/schizophrenia
- prescribe/be given/be on/take drugs/medicine/medication/pills/painkillers/antibiotics
- treat somebody for cancer/depression/shock
- have/undergo an examination/an operation/surgery/a kidney transplant/therapy/chemotherapy/treatment for cancer
- have/be given an injection/(British English) a flu jab/(North American English) a flu shot/a blood transfusion/a scan/an X-ray
- cure a disease/an ailment/cancer/a headache/a patient
- prevent the spread of disease/further outbreaks/damage to the lungs
- be vaccinated against the flu/(British English) flu/the measles/(British English) measles/polio/smallpox
- enhance/boost/confer/build immunity to a disease
Topics Illnessb2
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- nasty
- flu
- stomach
- …
verb + bug
- have
- catch
- come down with
- …
bug + verb
- go around
- go round
- strike somebody down
- …
preposition
- with a/the bug
See full entry
(usually the… bug)
[singular] (informal) an enthusiastic interest in something such as a sport or a hobby
- She's been bitten by the travel bug.
- She was never interested in fitness before but now she's been bitten by the bug.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
verb + bug
- be bitten by
- catch
- get
- …
bug + verb
- bite (somebody)
See full entry
[countable] a fault in a machine, especially in a computer system or program
- The software is full of bugs.
- My computer's really slow at the moment—it must be some kind of bug.
Topics Computersb2
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- minor
- annoying
- computer
- …
verb + bug
- discover
- find
- fix
- …
preposition
- bug in
See full entry
[countable] (informal) a small hidden device for listening to other people’s conversations
- They planted a bug in his hotel room.
Topics Crime and punishmentc1

Word Originearly 17th cent.: of unknown origin. Current verb senses date from the early 20th cent.

bug

verb

/bʌɡ/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they bug	/bʌɡ/ /bʌɡ/
he / she / it bugs	/bʌɡz/ /bʌɡz/
past simple bugged	/bʌɡd/ /bʌɡd/
past participle bugged	/bʌɡd/ /bʌɡd/
-ing form bugging	/ˈbʌɡɪŋ/ /ˈbʌɡɪŋ/

Idioms Phrasal Verbs

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bug something to put a special device (= a bug) somewhere in order to listen secretly to other people’s conversations
- They bugged her hotel room.
- They were bugging his telephone conversations.
- A mobile phone can be used as a bugging device even when it is switched off.
Topics Crime and punishmentc1
bug somebody (informal) to annoy somebody
- Stop bugging me!
- It's something that's been bugging me a lot recently.
- She’s really beginning to bug me.
- What's the matter? Is there something bugging you?
More Like This Consonant-doubling verbs
Consonant-doubling verbs
- bob
- club
- dub
- grab
- rub
- sob
- throb
- kid
- nod
- pad
- plod
- prod
- shred
- skid
- thud
- beg
- blog
- bug
- drag
- drug
- flag
- hug
- jog
- log
- mug
- nag
- plug
- bar
- confer
- infer
- occur
- prefer
- refer
- star
- stir
- transfer
- acquit
- admit
- allot
- chat
- clot
- commit
- jut
- knit
- pat
- regret
- rot
- spot
- submit
- appal
- cancel
- channel
- control
- counsel
- enrol
- equal
- excel
- fuel
- fulfil
- label
- level
- marvel
- model
- pedal
- quarrel
- signal
- travel

Word Originearly 17th cent.: of unknown origin. Current verb senses date from the early 20th cent.

Idioms

bug the hell/crap/shit out of somebody

(taboo, slang) to annoy somebody very much
- The song just bugs the hell out of me.
- Those two idiots bug the shit out of me.