Vaccination
/ˌvæk.sɪˈneɪ.ʃən/noun
The process of administering a vaccine to stimulate immunity against a disease.
Did you know?The word was coined from Latin vacca, meaning “cow,” after Edward Jenner observed that infection with cowpox could protect people from deadly smallpox.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Latin
Latin
vacca
“Cow; the source of the later medical term.”
1790s
English
vaccine
“Originally relating to cowpox, the disease observed to protect against smallpox.”
1798
English
vaccinate
“To inoculate with material derived from cowpox, following Edward Jenner’s experiments.”
Early 19th Century
English
vaccination
“The act or process of vaccinating.”
Modern English
English
vaccination
“Administration of a vaccine to produce immunity against disease.”