microbiologist
Americannoun
Explanation
Do you love examining tiny things through a microscope? Maybe you should consider being a microbiologist! A microbiologist is a scientist who studies very small organisms. These scientists study microscopic organisms including fungi, algae, the tiny flora that live in your digestive system, and viruses that make people sick. A microbiologist might work to identify bacteria that cause disease or ensure the food supply is free of harmful microorganisms. The word microbiologist, like biologist, is rooted in the Greek word for "life," bios, with the addition of the prefix micro-, "small."
Vocabulary lists containing microbiologist
Florida's B.E.S.T. Roots: micro
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Prefixes: micro-
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
micro (small)
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
“It’s like a needle in a haystack,” says Rodney Rohde, a clinical microbiologist and professor at Texas State University.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
But as the food microbiologist Lee-Ann Jaykus told Nadira, it’s also possible contaminated lettuce ended up elsewhere—or even that there’s more than one outbreak happening at once.
From Slate ● Jul. 17, 2026
In this world, a player like Omeed “Atlas” Atlaschi, 31, is a microbiologist in Orange County by day, and an elite gamer by night.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 20, 2026
It was also attended by consultant microbiologist Dr Christine Peters, a whistleblower who says she had been flagging concerns about the hospital buildings since 2014 but was advised to "pipe down".
From BBC ● Feb. 5, 2026
I once had a friend, an extraordinary microbiologist named Wolf Vishniac, of the University of Rochester, in New York.
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.
