Hives

/haɪvz/ noun

Definition

An allergic reaction that causes itchy red bumps or welts on the skin, or plural of hive (a home for bees).

Etymology

Old English 'hyf' for beehive has unclear origins. The skin condition meaning comes from the appearance resembling a honeycomb pattern, first recorded in medical texts in the 1600s.

Kelly Says

The skin condition got its name because the itchy bumps look like the hexagonal cells in a honeycomb—medieval doctors were basically naming the rash based on its visual pattern!

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