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Definition of paronychia

paronychia

/ˌpær.əˈnɪk.i.ə/
par · o · nych · i · a
Plural:paronychias
•
Adjective:paronychial
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paronychia Lexical Profile

paronychia Game Scores & Validity

• noun

1

A localized infection or inflammation of the tissue adjacent to the nail of a finger or toe, typically caused by bacteria or fungi.

Example

"After picking at a hangnail for several days, she developed a painful paronychia that required a prescribed antibiotic ointment."

Synonyms
View all synonyms for paronychia

• Rhymes for paronychia

• Nearby Words

parnassus
parodia
parodically
paronychia
paroo
parotia
parrot

Word Origin & Etymology

From Late Latin paronychia, borrowed from Greek parōnychia, derived from 'para-' (beside) and 'onyx' or 'onych-' (nail).

Usage Trend

Historical frequency of usage in published text.

180019102020
Data source: Google Books Ngram Viewer

Cite this Entry

Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Paronychia. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Oct 14, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/paronychia
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