Cancroid
/ˈkæŋ.kɔɪd/noun
Resembling or relating to cancer; a term once used in medicine for cancer-like growths or sores.
Did you know?It ultimately comes from the same root as **cancer**, the “crab” word that ancient doctors used because some tumors were thought to spread like a crab’s legs gripping flesh.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
karkínos
“crab”
Latin
Latin
cancer
“crab; later, a malignant tumor”
Late Latin
Latin
cancrosus
“cancerous, crab-like”
19th Century
English
cancroid
“resembling cancer; cancer-like”
Modern English
English
cancroid
“resembling or relating to cancer”