microscope

American  

[mahy-kruh-skohp] / ˈmaɪ krəˌskoʊp /

noun

• microscopes
  plural

1. an optical instrument having a magnifying lens or a combination of lenses for inspecting objects too small to be seen or too small to be seen distinctly and in detail by the unaided eye.

2. Astronomy. Microscope, the constellation Microscopium.

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microscope British  

/ ˈmaɪkrəˌskəʊp /

noun

1. an optical instrument that uses a lens or combination of lenses to produce a magnified image of a small, close object. Modern optical microscopes have magnifications of about 1500 to 2000 See also simple microscope compound microscope ultramicroscope

2. any instrument, such as the electron microscope, for producing a magnified visual image of a small object

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microscope Scientific  

/ mī′krə-skōp′ /

1. Any of various instruments used to magnify small objects that are difficult or impossible to observe the naked eye.

2. ◆ Optical microscopes use light reflected from or passed through the sample being observed to form a magnified image of the object, refracting the light with an arrangement of lenses and mirrors similar to those found in telescopes.

3. See also atomic force microscope electron microscope field ion microscope

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microscope Cultural  

1. A device that produces a magnified image of objects too small to be seen with the naked eye. Such objects are thus called “microscopic.” The microscope is widely used in medicine and biology. Common microscopes use lenses; others, such as electron microscopes, scan an object with electrons, x-rays, and other radiation besides ordinary visible light.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• microscopes
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of microscope

First recorded in 1650–60; from New Latin mīcroscopium; see micro-, -scope

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Explanation

A microscope is a mechanical instrument that magnifies the image of small objects. You would use a microscope to look at something tiny, like an amoeba. First used in the 1650s, microscope is descended from the Modern Latin microscopium, meaning "an instrument for viewing what is small." In science, microscopes are essential for examining material that can't be seen with the naked eye, like bacteria and viruses. In the same vein, you might feel like you're "under a microscope" if you're being very closely observed and scrutinized, like a star in the limelight or a politician in front of the media.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

microscope microscopes

Across the country, state officials of both parties have been bracing for their electoral processes to come under a microscope, and their contingency planning has reached new heights.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

"The AI complex remains under a microscope ahead of what may be the most important stretch of earnings season so far," said SPI Asset Management's Stephen Innes.

From Barron's ● Oct. 26, 2026

He named the resulting microscope Theia, after the ancient Greek Titaness associated with light and radiance.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 22, 2026

Additional funding from Biohub then made it possible to acquire a customized, state-of-the-art Thermo Fisher Krios cryo-EM microscope and modify it to accommodate the laser technology.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 22, 2026

That the telescope flourished and the microscope languished is one of the signs that the Scientific Revolution can properly be understood as a revolution—that is, a revolt against a previous order.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Professor Pal has already demonstrated laboratory-scale CPL detection technologies involving microscopes, cameras, and biological cell plate readers, which are instruments commonly used to examine large numbers of cell samples.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 24, 2026

Nikon said the use of generative AI in the composition of the video broke the rules of its Small World In Motion contest, which accepts photos and video taken using powerful microscopes.

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

Nikon's annual Small World In Motion contest accepts photos and video taken using powerful microscopes, and has run annually for the last 15 years.

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026

Electron microscopes can reveal structures far smaller than anything visible with ordinary light.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 13, 2026

Telescopes and microscopes depended on pre-existing techniques for making lenses, and thermometers and barometers depended on pre-existing techniques for blowing glass.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

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