n., pl., -gos.
A contagious bacterial skin infection, usually of children, that is characterized by the eruption of superficial pustules and the formation of thick yellow crusts, commonly on the face.
[Middle English, from Latin impetīgō, from impetere, to attack. See impetus.]
impetigenous im'pe·tig'e·nous (-tĭj'ə-nəs) adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
