germ

Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary

Contents 1 English 1.1 Etymology 1.2 Pronunciation 1.3 Noun 1.3.1 Derived terms 1.3.2 Translations 1.4 See also 1.4.1 External links

[edit] English

[edit] Etymology

From French germe < Latin germen (“‘a sprig, offshoot, sprout, bud, germ, embryo’”); origin uncertain.

[edit] Pronunciation

• enPR: jûrm, IPA: /dʒɜː(r)m/, SAMPA: /dZ3:(r)m/
•  Audio (US)^{help, file}

  Rhymes: -ɜː(r)m

[edit] Noun

germ (plural germs)

1. (biology) The small mass of cells from which a new organism develops; a seed, bud or spore.
2. A pathogenic microorganism.
3. An idea that forms the basis of some project.
4. The embryo of a seed, especially of a seed used as a cereal or grain. See Wikipedia article on cereal germ.

[edit] Derived terms

• germicidal
• germicide
• germ warfare
• germ cell
• germicidal
• germicide
• germinal
• germinate
• germination
• germinative
• germ layer
• germ plasm
• germ theory

[edit] Translations

[edit] See also

• bacteria
• microbe
• parasite
• virus

[edit] External links

• germ in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• germ in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911