: a disease of the human immune system that is characterized cytologically especially by reduction in the numbers of CD4-bearing helper T cells to 20 percent or less of normal thereby rendering the subject highly vulnerable to life-threatening conditions (such as Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia) and to some (such as Kaposi's sarcoma) that become life-threatening and that is caused by infection with HIV commonly transmitted in infected blood especially during illicit intravenous drug use and in bodily secretions (such as semen) during sexual intercourse
Examples of AIDS in a Sentence
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Campbell is a founding member of Musicians United for Social Equity, is on the advisory board of Maestra, has music directed and/or supervised numerous events for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, the Serious Fun Children’s Network, and Kristin Chenoweth’s Broadway Bootcamp.
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Greg Evans, Deadline, 30 Apr. 2026
At the height of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s, the organization raised thousands of dollars for this cause through drag shows, where El Daña competed and won the emperor’s title three times.
—Nicole MacIas Garibay, Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2026
The film examines the generation who never expected to become senior citizens in the face of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and decades of oppression, who now find themselves trailblazers again as the first openly LGBTQ seniors.
—Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 29 Apr. 2026
The unrestricted grant resurrects the spirt of the AIDS Treatment Project, which Giorno started when the epidemic left so many artists in need beginning in the early ’80s.
—Andy Battaglia, ARTnews.com, 29 Apr. 2026
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Greg Evans, Deadline, 30 Apr. 2026
At the height of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s, the organization raised thousands of dollars for this cause through drag shows, where El Daña competed and won the emperor’s title three times.
—Nicole MacIas Garibay, Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2026
The film examines the generation who never expected to become senior citizens in the face of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and decades of oppression, who now find themselves trailblazers again as the first openly LGBTQ seniors.
—Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 29 Apr. 2026
The unrestricted grant resurrects the spirt of the AIDS Treatment Project, which Giorno started when the epidemic left so many artists in need beginning in the early ’80s.
—Andy Battaglia, ARTnews.com, 29 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for AIDS
Cite this Entry
“AIDS.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/AIDS. Accessed 5 May. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
AIDS
noun
: a serious disease of the human immune system marked by destruction of a large proportion of the helper T cells in the body due to infection by the HIV virus commonly transmitted especially in blood and semen
Medical Definition
AIDS
noun
: a disease of the human immune system that is characterized cytologically especially by a reduction in the numbers of CD4-bearing helper T cells to 20 percent or less of normal thereby rendering the subject highly vulnerable to life-threatening conditions (as Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia) and to some that become life threatening (as Kaposi's sarcoma) and that is caused by infection with HIV commonly transmitted in infected blood especially during illicit intravenous drug use and in bodily secretions (as semen) during sexual intercourse
called also acquired immune deficiency syndrome, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
