sclerosis

From Ancient Greek σκλήρωσις (sklḗrōsis, “hardening”), from σκληρόω (sklēróō, “to harden”), from σκληρός (sklērós, “hard”); by surface analysis, sclero- +‎ -osis.

• IPA^(key): /skləˈɹəʊsɪs/
• (US) IPA^(key): /skləˈroʊsəs/

  • Audio (US):

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• Hyphenation: scle‧ro‧sis
• Rhymes: -əʊsɪs

sclerosis (countable and uncountable, plural scleroses)

1. (pathology) The abnormal hardening of body tissues, such as an artery; the appearance of hardenings, indurations, lesions, nodules.

   Synonyms: hardening, fibrosis (in some contexts), induration

   • 2025 April 10, Dan Heching, “Eric Dane shares that he has been diagnosed with ALS”, in CNN‎^[1]:

     The “Euphoria” and “Grey’s Anatomy” actor announced on Thursday that he has been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.

2. Inability to create change or excessive resistance to change.
   • 2019 December 6, Charles Hugh Smith, Suppressing Dissent Guarantees Disorder and Collapse‎^[2]:

     Suppressing dissent dooms the society to sclerosis, decline and collapse.

• “sclerosis”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “sclerosis”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.

Borrowed from Ancient Greek σκλήρωσις (sklḗrōsis, “hardening”).

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [skɫeːˈroː.sɪs]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [skleˈrɔː.s̬is]

sclērōsis f (genitive sclērōsis or sclērōseōs or sclērōsios); third declension

1. (New Latin) sclerosis

Third-declension noun (Greek-type, i-stem).

¹Found sometimes in Medieval and New Latin.