herpes simplex

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

• noun A recurrent viral infection caused by a herpesvirus, marked by the eruption of fluid-containing vesicles usually on the mouth, lips, and face.
• noun The herpesvirus, designated herpes simplex type one, that causes this infection.
• noun A recurrent viral infection, caused by a herpesvirus, that is sexually transmitted and marked by the eruption of fluid-containing vesicles usually on the genitals.
• noun The herpesvirus, designated herpes simplex type two, that causes this infection.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

• noun (Med.) either of two forms of herpesvirus infection, distinguished as being caused by herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), which causes mostly sores and eruptions around the mouth (cold sores and fever blisters) and at other points above the waist, and herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2), causing genital herpes. HSV-1 is also known in some cases to cause genital herpes infections.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

• noun pathology A viral disease caused by Herpes simplex viruses.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• noun an infection caused by the herpes simplex virus; affects the skin and nervous system; produces small temporary (but sometimes painful) blisters on the skin and mucous membranes
• noun a herpes virus that affects the skin and nervous system