bacillus

[ buh-sil-uh s ]

/ bəˈsɪl əs /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR bacillus ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural ba·cil·li [buh-sil-ahy] /bəˈsɪl aɪ/.

any rod-shaped or cylindrical bacterium of the genus Bacillus, comprising spore-producing bacteria.

(formerly) any bacterium.

Nearby words

Origin of bacillus

1880–85; < Late Latin, variant of Latin bacillum (diminutive of baculum) staff, walking stick

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for bacillus

Anthrax, or Bacillus anthracis, is spore-forming bacteria found in soil that most commonly affects cattle.
CDC: 80 May Have Been Exposed to Anthrax|Abby Haglage|June 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Might Stevens have encountered spores of Bacillus anthracis during a recent hike through woods in North Carolina?
The Mirage Man by David Willman: Anthrax Attacker Bruce Ivins' Obsessions||June 2, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Bacillus cuenoti Mercier, bactéroide de Periplaneta orientalis, à la morphologie d'une bactérie.
The Biotic Associations of Cockroaches|Louis M. Roth
Cream ripened with common bacteria found in hay dust (Bacillus subtilis) gives a very undesirable flavor to butter.
Appletons' Popular Science Monthly, December 1899|Various

The thought of the bacillus made the pages seem colourless; it dwarfed all meaning in the words.
The Blue Germ|Martin Swayne
Of course I didn't examine for the bacillus, but it isn't there.
Heart of the West|O. Henry
Bacillus rosii is a brown, wingless form found in Italy and the south of France.
The Young Collector's Handbook of Ants, Bees, Dragon-flies, Earwigs, Crickets, and Flies|W. Harcourt Bath

British Dictionary definitions for bacillus

bacillus

/ (bəˈsɪləs) /

noun plural -cilli (-ˈsɪlaɪ)

any rod-shaped bacterium, such as a clostridium bacteriumCompare coccus (def. 2), spirillum (def. 1)

any of various rodlike spore-producing bacteria constituting the family Bacillaceae, esp of the genus Bacillus

Word Origin for bacillus

C19: from Latin: a small staff, from baculum walking stick

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for bacillus

bacillus

1877, medical Latin, from Late Latin bacillus "wand," literally "little staff," diminutive of baculum "a stick," from PIE root *bak- "staff," also source of Greek bakterion (see bacteria). Introduced as a term in bacteriology 1853 by German botanist Ferdinand Cohn (1828-1898).

Medicine definitions for bacillus

bacillus

[ bə-sĭl′əs ]

n. pl. ba•cil•li (-sĭl′ī′)

Any of various rod-shaped, usually gram-positive aerobic bacteria of the genus Bacillus that often occur in chains and include Bacillus anthracis, the causative agent of anthrax.

Any of various bacteria, especially a rod-shaped bacterium.