Wart

/wɔrt/ noun

Definition

A small, hard bump on your skin caused by a virus, usually painless but annoying because of how it looks.

Etymology

From Old English 'wearte,' related to Germanic root *wart-. The word has remained nearly unchanged in form and meaning for over a thousand years, making it one of English's oldest medical terms.

Kelly Says

Warts are caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV), and people have had them for literally thousands of years—ancient Egyptians and Romans wrote about warts and tried all sorts of bizarre remedies, proving this tiny viral bump has been annoying humanity forever.

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