What does anthracnose mean?
Anthracnose is a destructive fungal disease that affects a wide range of plants, including shade trees such as sycamores, oaks, and dogwoods, as well as crops like tomatoes, mangoes, and beans. It takes its name from the Greek roots anthrax ('coal') and nosos ('disease'), reflecting the dark, coal-black, sunken lesions it produces on leaves, stems, twigs, and ripening fruit. The pathogens responsible—chiefly fungi in genera such as Colletotrichum and Apiognomonia—thrive in cool, wet weather, spreading through splashing rain and contaminated debris. While anthracnose rarely kills mature trees outright, repeated defoliation weakens them over time and can render fruit unmarketable. Gardeners and growers manage it through resistant cultivars, pruning out infected material, improving air circulation, and applying fungicides during vulnerable periods. The word belongs to the specialist vocabulary of plant pathology but appears regularly in gardening guides and agricultural reporting.
nounA fungal disease of plants, especially trees and fruits, characterized by dark, sunken lesions on leaves, stems, fruit, or twigs.
- A fungal plant disease producing dark, sunken lesions on leaves, stems, fruits, or twigs, caused by fungi such as Colletotrichum or Apiognomonia species.
"The sycamore's leaves were marred by the dark blotches typical of anthracnose."
"Wet spring weather encouraged an outbreak of anthracnose in the oak groves along the river."
"Breeders have developed tomato varieties with strong resistance to anthracnose."
Rarely pluralized in practice; the singular typically suffices even when referring to outbreaks on multiple hosts, since each is usually identified by its host plant.
"The survey catalogued several distinct anthracnoses across the region's orchards."
The name literally means 'coal disease' in Greek — a nod to the blackened, charcoal-like spots the fungus leaves on leaves and fruit.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of anthracnose
The word anthracnose was coined in the 19th century from the Greek elements anthrax ('coal' or 'charcoal') and nosos ('disease'), so it literally means 'coal disease'. The same root anthrax gives its name to the bacterial illness anthrax and to anthracite, the hardest form of coal. The second element, nosos, also underlies learned medical terms such as diagnosis and prognosis, which entered English via Greek medical vocabulary.
How anthracnose is actually used
A technical term used mainly by plant pathologists, horticulturists, gardeners, and agricultural writers; rarely encountered outside discussions of plant health. It carries no figurative or informal usage.
Easily confused with anthracnose
Anthrax is a serious bacterial disease of animals and humans caused by Bacillus anthracis, whereas anthracnose is a fungal disease affecting plants; both names derive from the Greek 'anthrax' meaning coal.