Definition of "zoster" []

• A belt or girdle worn by men in ancient Greece. (noun)
• Herpes zoster. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Shingles is sometimes called herpes "zoster", a Greek word meaning "girdle" or "belt", which describes the appearance of the rash."
• "The doctors told her that it was herpes zoster, which is caused by the same virus as chicken pox."
• "The first one is for varicella zoster, which is shingles."