Wiktionary
n. Either of two related viruses ((taxlink Human immunodeficiency virus 1 species noshow=1) (HIV-1) and (taxlink Human immunodeficiency virus 2 species noshow=1) (HIV-2)) that progressively destroy the body's immune system and can lead to AIDS.
WordNet
n. the virus that causes acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS); it replicates in and kills the helper T cells [syn: HIV]
Usage examples of "human immunodeficiency virus".
About five thousand types of virus are known, and between them they afflict us with many hundreds of diseases, ranging from the flu and common cold to those that are most invidious to human well-being: smallpox, rabies, yellow fever, ebola, polio, and the human immunodeficiency virus, the source of AIDS.
In the year 2002, three million people died of AIDS, which is caused by human immunodeficiency virus.