purple death

English

Etymology

purple +‎ death. From cyanosis due to difficulty breathing, which would turn the skin purple.[1][2][3][4]

Noun

purple death (uncountable)

  1. (pathology, historical, dated) Synonym of Spanish influenza

References
  1. Sheboygan Press, "Sheboygan was struck by 1918 flu", Beth Dippel, 28 November 2014
  2. The Kansas City Star, "A coronavirus lesson? How KC’s response to 1918 flu pandemic caused needless death", Eric Adler, 15 March 2020
  3. The Times News (Leighton), "Spanish flu of 1918-19 was deadlier than wars", Jim Zbick, 30 March 2020
  4. Holt, "Purple Death: The Mysterious Flu of 1918", David Getz, 2000, →ISBN.
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