in a historical context, the plague often refers to the
bubonic plague or "
black death", also known as pestilence, which wiped out large portions of the population of Europe and Asia during the 14th and 15th centuries
in a modern vernacular context, the plague refers to someone being out with illness, most often a chest cold or flu, usually exaggerating the extent of one's illness while demonstrating their
incapacity
Sara can't come in today, she's out with the
plague
Okay then send her my condolences and tell her to get better soon!
The
Bubonic plague, otherwise simply called the "plague", killed millions of people in medieval Europe