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• coccus
  coccus

  noun

  a spherical bacterium.
• -coccus
  -coccus

  a combining form representing coccus in compound words.

coccus

¹ American  

[kok-uhs] / ˈkɒk əs /

noun

cocci plural

1. Bacteriology. a spherical bacterium.

2. Botany. one of the carpels of a schizocarp.

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-coccus ² American  

1. a combining form representing coccus in compound words.

   streptococcus.

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coccus British  

/ ˈkɒkəs, ˈkɒksɪk /

noun

1. any spherical or nearly spherical bacterium, such as a staphylococcus Compare bacillus spirillum

2. the part of a fruit that contains one seed and separates from the whole fruit at maturity

3. any of the scale insects of the genus Coccus

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coccus Scientific  

/ kŏk′əs /

cocci plural

1. Any of various bacteria having a round or ovoid form such as streptococcus or staphylococcus, usually grouped in chains.

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Usage

What does -coccus mean? The combining form -coccus is used like a suffix meaning “coccus.” Coccus is a scientific term with two meanings. In terms from bacteriology, it means "spherical bacterium." In terms from botany, it refers to the mericarp, one segment of a schizocarp, a kind of fruit. The form -coccus comes from Greek kókkos, meaning “grain, seed, or berry.” The Latin equivalent of kókkos is grānum, “grain” or “seed,” which is the source of words such as grain, granite, and granular. Discover more at our entry for each word. What are variants of -coccus?While -coccus doesn't have any variants, it is related to the form -coccal, as in streptococcal. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use article for -coccal.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• coccal
  adjective
• coccic
  adjective
• coccoid
  adjective
• coccous
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• cocci
  plural

Etymology

Origin of coccus

1755–65; < New Latin < Greek kókkos grain, seed, berry

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

coccus cocci

Each insect, known as Dactylopius coccus, must be bred to a larvae stage and “planted” on a previously wounded cactus pad, and then left for months to feed and mature.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 1, 2023

Its use raised objections by vegans and vegetarians because it comes from the Dactylopius coccus, a small white insect gives a vibrant red color when crushed.

From Scientific American ● Jun. 4, 2013

Boiled and ground masses of female cochineal bugs, Dactylopius coccus, whose fat contains the dye.

From Time Magazine Archive

The female coccus, whilst young, attaches itself by its proboscis to a plant; sucks the sap but never moves again; is fertilised and lays eggs; and this is its whole history.

From The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex, Vol. I by Darwin, Charles

It is practically a fact that wherever there is found a diffuse abscess there will be discovered the streptococcus pyogenes, which is the name of the chain coccus above mentioned.

From Scientific American Supplement, No. 810, July 11, 1891 by Various

Like COVID-19, people infected with cocci can have extremely different symptoms.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 4, 2022

Part a: The micrograph shows ball-shaped cocci about 0.9 microns long.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015

Note that bacterial shape is not phylum-dependent; bacteria within a phylum may be cocci, rod-shaped, or spiral.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015

Many, like Mr. Klorman, have life-threatening cocci meningitis.

From New York Times ● Jul. 5, 2013

Some of the cocci form long chains and the term streptococcus is applied to such.

From Outlines of dairy bacteriology A concise manual for the use of students in dairying by Hastings, Edwin George