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ci·gua·ter·a

(sē′gwə-tĕrə)

Poisoning caused by ingesting fish contaminated with ciguatoxin, characterized by gastrointestinal and neurological symptoms. Also called ciguatera fish poisoning, ciguatera poisoning.

[Spanish ciguatera, from Cuban Spanish, a similar poisoning from eating the sea snail Cittarium pica, from ciguato, person suffering from such poisoning, from cigua, the edible sea snail Cittarium pica (commonly collected and eaten throughout the Antilles, but whose flesh however sometimes contains toxins originating in its food sources), possibly of Arawakan origin.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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