bug
n.— «The illegal numbers racket known as “the bug” lives on after the murder this week of one of its one-time kingpins.» —“‘The bug’: Shadow of former self Numbers racket survives, but lottery has cost it players” by Bill Montgomery Atlanta Journal-Constitution Nov. 29, 1995. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Janet in Montgomery, Alabama, reports that a day after she had surgery on her hand, the wound burst open, and a doctor noted that her wound dehisced. She’s used to hearing dehisce used in botany to mean the splitting of a plant structure to...
The adjectives canine and feline refer to dogs and cats. But how does English address other groups of animals? Plus, cabin fever has been around much longer than the current pandemic. That restless, antsy, stir-crazy feeling goes back to the days...