micrococcus

[ mahy-kruh-kok-uh s ]

/ ˌmaɪ krəˈkɒk əs /

noun, plural mi·cro·coc·ci [mahy-kruh-kok-sahy, -see] /ˌmaɪ krəˈkɒk saɪ, -si/. Bacteriology.

any spherical bacterium of the genus Micrococcus, occurring in irregular masses, many species of which are pigmented and are saprophytic or parasitic.

Words nearby micrococcus

microcirculation, microclimate, microclimatology, microcline, micrococcaceae, micrococcus, microcode, microcolon, microcomponent, microcomputer, microcomputing

Origin of micrococcus

< New Latin (1872); see micro-, coccus

OTHER WORDS FROM micrococcus

mi·cro·coc·cal, mi·cro·coc·cic

[mahy-kruh-kok-sik] /ˌmaɪ krəˈkɒk sɪk/, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for micrococcus

The nitrifying organism has been submitted as yet to but little microscopical study; it is apparently a micrococcus.
Scientific American Supplement, Vol. XIX, No. 470, Jan. 3, 1885|Various
This germ is closely related to Conn's micrococcus of bitter milk.
Outlines of Dairy Bacteriology, 8th edition|H. L. Russell
Either kill the micrococcus or heal the wound, and you are free from both.
A Journey in Other Worlds|John Jacob Astor
Cocci exhibit this movement, but with the exception of the Micrococcus agilis, the cocci are non-motile.
The Elements of Bacteriological Technique|John William Henry Eyre

The cause of this luminosity is Micrococcus phosphorens, an immotile round, or almost round organism.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Part 1, Slice 2|Various

British Dictionary definitions for micrococcus

micrococcus

/ (ˌmaɪkrəʊˈkɒkəs) /

noun plural -cocci (-ˈkɒksaɪ)

any spherical Gram-positive bacterium of the genus Micrococcus : family Micrococcaceae

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 micrococcus (1 of 2)

micrococcus

[ mī′krō-kŏk′əs ]

n. pl. mi•cro•coc•ci (-kŏk′sī′, -kŏk′ī′)

A bacterium of the genus Micrococcus.

Other words from micrococcus

mi′cro•coc′cal (-kŏk′əl) adj.

Medicine definitions for micrococcus (2 of 2)

Micrococcus

n.

A genus of aerobic, gram-positive, spherical bacteria that occur singly, in pairs, or in irregular masses and are saprophytic or parasitic but not pathogenic.