Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - symptom

 noun  Etymology: Late Latin ~at-, ~a, from Greek symptomat-, symptoma happening, attribute, ~, from sympiptein to happen, from syn- + piptein to fall — more at feather  Date: 1541  1.  a. subjective evidence of disease or physical disturbance; broadly something that indicates the presence of bodily disorder  b. an evident reaction by a plant to a pathogen  2.  a. something that indicates the existence of something else ~s of an inner turmoil  b. a slight indication ; trace  Synonyms: see sign  • ~less adjective