viral
viral Lexical Profile
viral Game Scores & Validity
• adjective
Relating to an image, video, or piece of information that is circulated rapidly and widely from one internet user to another.
"Her humorous dance video became a viral sensation overnight, attracting millions of views."
Relating to, involving, or caused by a biological virus.
"The doctor explained that antibiotics are ineffective against a viral infection."
• noun
An image, video, or advertisement that spreads rapidly and widely across the internet through user-to-user sharing.
"The marketing agency produced a clever viral that doubled the brand's social media engagement."
• Rhymes for viral
Word Origin & Etymology
Coined in the mid-20th century from the noun 'virus' (from Latin 'virus', meaning 'poison' or 'slimy liquid') plus the suffix '-al'. Its sense relating to rapid online dissemination emerged in the late 1990s by analogy with the way biological viruses spread from host to host.