# malaria

> English word · Noun · IPA /məˈlɛəɹi.ə/ · frequency rank #12,098

## Definitions
1. A disease spread by mosquito, in which a protozoan, Plasmodium, multiplies in blood every few days.
2. Supposed poisonous air arising from marshy districts, once thought to cause fever.

## Etymology
Borrowed from Italian malaria, formed from mal- (“bad”) and aria (“air”). Introduced into English by the Scottish geologist John MacCulloch (1773–1835). Displaced native Old English unlyft (literally “bad air”).

## Easily confused with
- **Maria** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/malaria-vs-maria)
- **Malia** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/malaria-vs-malia)
- **Malawi** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/malaria-vs-malawi)
- **Malaya** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/malaria-vs-malaya)
- **Melania** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/malaria-vs-melania)
- **materia** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/malaria-vs-materia)
- **Malaysia** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/malaria-vs-malaysia)
- **Malaga** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/malaga-vs-malaria)
- **Malacca** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/malacca-vs-malaria)

## Common misspellings (9)
`amlaria`, `maalria`, `malaira`, `malarai`, `malarria`, `mallaria`, `malraia`, `mlaaria`, `mmalaria`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/malaria