From WordNet (r) 2.0 (August 2003) [wn]:
rabies
n : an acute viral disease of the nervous system of warm-blooded
animals (usually transmitted by the bite of a rabid
animal); rabies is fatal if the virus reaches the brain
[syn: hydrophobia, lyssa, madness]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]: Rabies \Ra"bi*es\ (r[=a]"b[i^]*[=e]z), n. [L. See Rage, n.] Same as Hydrophobia (b); canine madness. [1913 Webster]