English

Noun

fomes ‎(plural fomites)

1. (medicine, obsolete) Any substance supposed to be capable of absorbing, retaining, and transporting contagious or infectious germs.

   Woollen clothes are said to be active fomites.

Latin

Etymology

Related to Latin foveō ‎(“I keep warm”), compare Latin fōmentum ‎(“compress, poultice; kindling; mitigation”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈfoː.mes/, [ˈfoː.mɛs]

Noun

fōmes f ‎(genitive fōmitis); third declension

1. tinder, kindling

Inflection

Third declension.

References

• fomes in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• fomes in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• Félix Gaffiot (1934), “fomes”, in Dictionnaire Illustré Latin-Français, Paris: Hachette.

Portuguese

Noun

fomes

1. plural of fome

Spanish

Adjective

fomes m pl, f pl

1. plural of fome