pes ‧ ti ‧ lence /ˈpestələns, ˈpestɪləns/ BrE AmE noun [uncountable and countable]
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: French ; Origin: Latin pestilentia , from pestis ; ⇨ ↑ pest ]
literary a disease that spreads quickly and kills a lot of people SYN plague