spirillum

American  

[spahy-ril-uhm] / spaɪˈrɪl əm /

noun

Bacteriology.

spirilla plural

1. any of several spirally twisted, aerobic bacteria of the genus Spirillum, certain species of which are pathogenic for humans.

2. any of various similar microorganisms.

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spirillum British  

/ spaɪˈrɪləm /

noun

1. any bacterium having a curved or spirally twisted rodlike body Compare coccus bacillus

2. any bacterium of the genus Spirillum, such as S. minus, which causes ratbite fever

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spirillum Scientific  

/ spī-rĭl′əm /

spirilla plural

1. Any of various bacteria that are shaped like a spiral, such as the spirochete Treponema pallidum, which causes syphilis.

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Other Word Forms

• spirillar
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of spirillum

1870–75; < New Latin, equivalent to Latin spīr ( a ) ( see spire ²) + -illum diminutive suffix

Compare meaning

How does spirillum compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• spirillum vs. spirochete

Example Sentences

One is a wriggly spirillum, the other a cigar-shaped bacillus.

From Time Magazine Archive

That is a spirillum that lives in the blood of rats and mice.�

From Time Magazine Archive

The same is true of Schizomycetes, to which all the bacteria, bacillus, spirillum, and vibrio, and a number of other groups belong.

From The Mushroom, Edible and Otherwise Its Habitat and its Time of Growth by Hard, Miron Elisha

At the height of the fever the spirillum appears in the blood as an attenuated, worm-like creature, actively struggling and squirming among the blood corpuscles.

From Sketches of the East Africa Campaign by Dolbey, Robert Valentine

DEFINITION.—Relapsing fever is an epidemic contagious disease, the specific cause of which is not certainly known, although a peculiar spirillum appears to be constantly present in the blood.

From A System of Practical Medicine by American Authors, Vol. I Volume 1: Pathology and General Diseases by Various