compound microscope

American  

noun

1. an optical instrument for forming magnified images of small objects, consisting of an objective lens with a very short focal length and an eyepiece with a longer focal length, both lenses mounted in the same tube.

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compound microscope British  

noun

1. an instrument for magnifying small objects, consisting of a lens of short focal length for forming an image that is further magnified by a second lens of longer focal length Compare simple microscope

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Etymology

Origin of compound microscope

First recorded in 1865–70

Example Sentences

Galileo had his telescope, Louis Pasteur had a compound microscope and American scientists today have … the treadmill?

From Washington Times • Dec. 31, 2023

When processed properly, scientists like Lackmann can examine the otolith with a compound microscope and count the layers, like the rings on a tree, and learn the age of the fish.

From Science Daily • Oct. 30, 2023

Figure 26.16 A compound microscope composed of two lenses, an objective and an eyepiece.

From Textbooks • Aug. 12, 2015

Explanations requiring the use of a compound microscope do not enter necessarily into these lessons.

From Outlines of Lessons in Botany, Part I; from Seed to Leaf by Newell, Jane H.

This is the compound microscope, the invention of which soon followed the telescope.

From Pioneers of Science by Lodge, Oliver, Sir