microbiology
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of microbiology
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How does microbiology compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Microbiology is the study of very small things, both living and nonliving. If you're fascinated by looking at tiny organisms through a microscope, you should take a class in microbiology. If your job involves microbiology, you're probably a microbiologist, a scientist who studies microorganisms and other microscopic things. Notice the prefix micro- in all of those words? It means "extremely small," from the Greek root mikros, "small or slight." Add this to biology, "the science of living things," and you get microbiology. This branch of science involves looking closely at fungi, viruses, parasites, bacteria, and other microbes.
Vocabulary lists containing microbiology
Words to Live By: Bio
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bio
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Microbiology - High School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Study co-author Dr Chris Williamson, associate professor in polar microbiology, emphasised that this "hidden diversity" highlights that further samples are needed.
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026
After reading “Microbe Hunters,” Paul de Kruif’s popular 1926 account of pioneers in microbiology, Sabin found his calling.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 21, 2026
“These viruses are also what are called ‘low incidence, high consequences,’” said Robert Cross, a hantavirus researcher and assistant professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.
From MarketWatch ● May 7, 2026
Thermo Fisher TMO 0.07%increase; green up pointing triangle Scientific has struck a deal to sell its microbiology business to European private-equity firm Astorg for about $1.075 billion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 27, 2026
Positive results in Martian microbiology were achieved in seven different samplings in two locales on Mars separated by 5,000 kilometers.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
