streptomyces

[ strep-tuh-mahy-seez ]

noun

, Bacteriology.

, plural strep·to·my·ces.

1. any of several aerobic bacteria of the genus Streptomyces, certain species of which produce antibiotics.

Word History and Origins

Origin of streptomyces¹

< New Latin (1943), equivalent to strepto- strepto- + Greek mýkēs mushroom, fungus