An acute, fatal disease in sheep and cattle caused by the bacterium Clostridium welchii, characterized by sudden death and internal bleeding.
Old English compound: 'brad' (sudden) + 'sot' (foolish or dazed), literally meaning 'suddenly dazed'; the term predates modern understanding of bacterial causes but accurately describes sudden livestock death.
Despite its Old English name, bradsot wasn't scientifically linked to a specific bacterium until the 1890s—sheep farmers for centuries blamed witches or bad air, but it was actually killed by bacterial spores found in pasture soil, making it one of the oldest veterinary mysteries solved by microbiology.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.