English

Proper noun

the English disease

1. Football (soccer) hooliganism
2. (Can we verify⁽⁺⁾ this sense?) Depression (especially suicidal)
3. (Can we verify⁽⁺⁾ this sense?) Hypochondria
4. (Can we verify⁽⁺⁾ this sense?) Sweating sickness
5. Gout
6. Rickets
7. Syphilis
8. Bronchitis
9. Tuberculosis
10. Laziness, low motivation
11. Poor industrial relations, and the resulting economic weakness
12. Masochism, especially a fondness for flagellation
13. Gambling
14. Haemophilia
15. Homosexuality

Citations

• For usage examples of this term, see Citations:English disease.

Usage notes

The meaning of the phrase the English disease, as with other similar terms such as the French disease and the Italian disease, depends heavily on the context and prejudices of the speaker. This is especially the case in the pejorative sense "syphilis", in which the nationality is essentially interchangeable depending on which country the speaker wishes to disparage.