Pestilence

Pestilence Pes"ti*lence, n. [F. pestilence, L. pestilentia. See {Pestilent}.] 1. Specifically, the disease known as the plague; hence, any contagious or infectious epidemic disease that is virulent and devastating. [1913 Webster]

The pestilence That walketh in darkness. --Ps. xci. 6. [1913 Webster]

2. Fig.: That which is pestilent, noxious, or pernicious to the moral character of great numbers. [1913 Webster]

I'll pour this pestilence into his ear. --Shak. [1913 Webster]

{Pestilence weed} (Bot.), the butterbur coltsfoot ({Petasites vulgaris}), so called because formerly considered a remedy for the plague. --Dr. Prior. [1913 Webster]