# pathogen

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈpæθəd͡ʒn̩/ · frequency rank #23,354

## Definitions
1. An agent that can cause disease, especially an infectious microorganism, such as a bacterium, virus, protozoon or fungus.

## Etymology
From patho- + -gen. Second element ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- (“lineage”) through Ancient Greek γένος (génos, “birth”)

## Easily confused with
- **pathogenic** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/pathogen-vs-pathogenic)

## Common misspellings (12)
`apthogen`, `pahtogen`, `pathgoen`, `pathhogen`, `pathoegn`, `pathogenn`, `pathoggen`, `pathogne`, `patohgen`, `patthogen`, `ppathogen`, `ptahogen`

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