DEFINITIONS

germ

[ jurm ]
/ dʒɜrm /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR germ ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a microorganism, especially when disease-producing; microbe.
a bud, offshoot, or seed.
the rudiment of a living organism; an embryo in its early stages.
the initial stage in development or evolution, as a germ cell or ancestral form.
something that serves as a source or initial stage for subsequent development: the germ of an idea.

adjective

Pathology. of, relating to, or caused by disease-producing germs.

Content related to germ

Hyper vs. HypoLet’s start from the top: Hyper- is a prefix that means excess or exaggeration, while hypo- is another prefix that means under or beneath. Both hyper and hypo are usually used as prefixes, which are elements or partial words added to the beginning of a base word to modify its meaning. Hyper is derived from the Greek word for over, and hypo is a Greek …
READ MORE
English Affixes From A To Z: A One-Stop List Of Suffixes, Prefixes, and Combining FormsIn English, we love to make new words by adding all sorts of bits to the front and back of existing terms. These are called affixes, and they are added to the base or stem of a word. When attached to the end of word, the affix is called a suffix. And to the beginning? A prefix.
READ MORE

Words related to germ

microorganism, disease, parasite, virus, plague, microbe, bug, bacterium, antibody, pathogen, spore, origin, embryo, cause, ovum, rudiment, egg, source, seed, nucleus

Words nearby germ

gergiev, geriatric, geriatrician, geriatrics, gerlachovka, germ, germ cell, germ layer, germ line, germ membrane, germ plasm

Origin of germ

1400–50; late Middle English < Middle French germe < Latin germen shoot, sprout, by dissimilation from *genmen, equivalent to gen- (see genitor, genus) + -men resultative noun suffix)

OTHER WORDS FROM germ

germ·less, adjectivegerm·like, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for germ

British Dictionary definitions for germ

germ
/ (dʒɜːm) /

noun

a microorganism, esp one that produces disease in animals or plants
(often plural) the rudimentary or initial form of somethingthe germs of revolution
a simple structure, such as a fertilized egg, that is capable of developing into a complete organism

Word Origin for germ

C17: from French germe, from Latin germen sprig, bud, sprout, seed
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

Medicine definitions for germ

germ
[ jûrm ]

n.

A small mass of protoplasm or cells from which a new organism or one of its parts may develop.
A microorganism, especially a pathogen.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.

Science definitions for germ

germ
[ jûrm ]

A microscopic organism or agent, especially one that is pathogenic, such as a bacterium or virus.

Usage

The terms germ and microbe have been used to refer to invisible agents of disease since the nineteenth century, when scientists introduced the germ theory of disease, the idea that infections and contagious diseases are caused by microorganisms. Microbe, a shortening and alteration of microorganism, comes from the Greek prefix mikro-, “small,” and the word bios, “life.” Scientists no longer use the terms germ and microbe very much. Today they can usually identify the specific agents of disease, such as individual species of bacteria or viruses. To refer generally to agents of disease, they use the term pathogen, from the Greek pathos, “suffering,” and the suffix -gen, “producer.” They use microorganism to refer to any unicellular organism, whether disease-causing or not.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.