bacterium
pronunciation
How to pronounce bacterium in British English:
UK [bækˈtɪərɪəm]
How to pronounce bacterium in American English:
US [bækˈtɪriəm]
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- Noun:
- (microbiology) single-celled or noncellular spherical or spiral or rod-shaped organisms lacking chlorophyll that reproduce by fission; important as pathogens and for biochemical properties; taxonomy is difficult; often considered plants
Word Origin
- bacterium
- bacterium: [19] Bacterium was coined in the 1840s from Greek baktérion, a diminutive of báktron ‘stick’, on the basis that the originally discovered bacteria were rod-shaped. At first it was sometimes anglicized to bactery, but the Latin form has prevailed. Related, but a later introduction, is bacillus [19]: this is a diminutive of Latin baculum ‘stick’, and the term was again inspired by the microorganism’s shape. Latin baculum is also responsible, via Italian bacchio and its diminutive form bacchetta, for the long French loaf, the baguette.=> bacillus, baguette, débacle, imbecile
- bacterium (n.)
- c. 1848, singular of bacteria (q.v.).
Example
- 1. So physicians turned to the bacterium 's genome for answers .
- 2. Because tetracycline 's secreted by a soil bacterium , streptomyces .
- 3. In this context patenting an artificial genome for a bacterium seems reasonable .
- 4. If a bacterium couldn 't recycle its rna , two major problems would arise .
- 5. What if a home-brew synthetic-biology club were accidentally to launch a real virus or bacterium ?