# bacteria

Pronunciation: say "bak-TEER-ee-uh" US /bækˈtɪɹ.i.ə/, UK /bakˈtɪə̯.ri.ə/

## Noun

1. Plural of bacterium. — plural of bacterium
   - Simple: Plural of bacterium. Use this form when you mean more than one.
   - _Beneficial bacteria in the gut aid digestion and crowd out harmful microbes._
   - _The bacteria multiplied rapidly in the warm, nutrient-rich broth._
2. A particular type, species, or strain of bacterium. *(US)*
   - Simple: A single kind, type, or strain of microbe.
   - _Researchers isolated a bacteria that breaks down plastic waste._
   - _Each bacteria in the sample was tested for antibiotic resistance._
3. Alternative form of bacterium. Nonstandard: using bacteria for one microbe is widely considered an error. *(nonstandard, US)* — Alternative form of bacterium.
   - Simple: Another way to write bacterium, meaning one microbe. Common in casual speech, but many people consider it an error.
   - _A single bacteria was found contaminating the water sample._
   - _The technician stained one bacteria to view it under high magnification._
4. A contemptible, repulsive person; a lowlife or slob. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A nasty, worthless person, used as an insult.
   - _He called his cheating ex a bacteria in front of the whole party._
   - _The landlord was a real bacteria, ignoring every complaint while pocketing the rent._

## Noun

5. Oval-shaped microbes, distinguished from the spherical coccus and the rod-shaped bacillus. *(dated)*
   - Simple: Tiny oval-shaped living things, not round and not shaped like a rod.
   - _The sample contained oval bacteria mixed in with rod-shaped forms._
   - _Stained smears revealed dense clusters of oval bacteria across the field._

## Origin

**Meanings 1–4** — Borrowed from New Latin bacteria, the plural of bactērium, which comes from the Ancient Greek baktḗrion, meaning "little rod."
**Meaning 5** — From New Latin bactēria, which comes from the Ancient Greek baktēríā, meaning "rod" or "stick."

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/bacteria (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).