herd immunity

== English == === Etymology === From herd + immunity, first identified in herds of cattle. === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈhəːd ɪˈmjuːnɪti/ (General American) IPA(key): /ˈhɚd ɪˈmjunəti/, [-ɾi] Hyphenation: herd im‧mun‧ity === Noun === herd immunity (countable and uncountable, plural herd immunities) (epidemiology) The indirect protection against the spread of a contagious disease in a given population caused by the immunity of a significant proportion of the population to that particular disease; the immunity may have been obtained through having survived the infection or through vaccination. [from early 20th c.] ==== Synonyms ==== ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Translations ==== === References === === Further reading === herd immunity on Wikipedia.Wikipedia