germ

See also: Germ, germ., and Germ.

English

Etymology

(deprecated template usage)

From Middle French germe, from Latin germen (“bud, seed, embryo”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d͡ʒɜːm/
• enPR: jûrm, IPA^(key): /d͡ʒɝm/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)m

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.
   • 1895, H. G. Wells, The Stolen Bacillus

     'This again,' said the Bacteriologist, slipping a glass slide under the microscope, 'is a preparation of the celebrated Bacillus of cholera - the cholera germ.'

3. The embryo of a seed, especially of a seed used as a cereal or grain. See Wikipedia article on cereal germ.
4. (figurative) The origin of an idea or project.

   the germ of civil liberty

5. (mathematics) An equivalence class that includes a specified function defined in an open neighborhood.

Derived terms

terms derived from germ (noun)

• germicidal
• germicide
• germ warfare
• germ cell
• germicidal
• germicide
• germinal

• germinate
• germination
• germinative
• germ layer
• germ plasm
• germ theory

Translations

mass of cells

• Bulgarian: ембрио́н (bg) m (embrión), заро́диш (bg) m (zaródiš)
• Burmese: မျိုး (my) (myui:)
• Catalan: germen (ca) m
• Dutch: kiem (nl) m
• Finnish: itiö (fi)
• French: germe (fr) m
• Galician: xerme m
• Georgian: ჩანასახი (čanasaxi), ემბრიონი (embrioni)
• German: Keim (de) m
• Greek: μικρόβιο (el) n (mikróvio)
• Hungarian: csíra (hu)
• Indonesian: kuman (id)
• Italian: germe (it) m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Japanese: 胚芽 (はいが, haiga)
• Khmer: ជីវាណូ (ciivaanou), ពីជៈ (piicĕəʼ)
• Korean: 배아 (ko) (baea)
• Portuguese: germe (pt) m
• Romanian: microb (ro) m, germen (ro) m
• Russian: заро́дыш (ru) m (zaródyš), зача́ток (ru) m (začátok), эмбрио́н (ru) m (embrión)
• Slovak: klíček m
• Spanish: germen (es) m
• Swedish: mikrob (sv) c
• Tagalog: binhay
• Ukrainian: заро́док m (zaródok), ембріо́н m (embrión)
• Vietnamese: mộng (vi), mầm (vi)

pathogenic microorganism

• Arabic: جُرْثُومَة (ar) f (jurṯūma)
• Belarusian: мікро́б m (mikrób)
• Bulgarian: микроб (bg) m (mikrob)
• Burmese: ပိုး (my) (pui:)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 細菌／细菌 (zh) (xìjūn), 细菌 (zh) (xìjūn), 菌 (zh) (jūn)

• Dutch: kiem (nl) m
• Finnish: mikrobi (fi)
• French: germe (fr) m
• Galician: xerme m
• Georgian: მიკრობი (miḳrobi)
• German: Keim (de) m
• Greek: μικρόβιο (el) n (mikróvio)
• Hindi: रोगाणु m (rogāṇu)
• Hungarian: csíra (hu), kórokozó (hu)
• Icelandic: sýkill (is) m
• Italian: microbo (it) m, germe (it) m
• Japanese: 細菌 (ja) (さいきん, saikin)
• Khmer: ក្រមី (km) (krɑməy)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Korean: 세균 (ko) (segyun)
• Lao: ເຊື້ອ (sư̄a), ຕົວພະຍາດ (tūa pha nyāt), ແມ່ພະຍາດ (mǣ pha nyāt), ເຊື້ອໂລກ (sư̄a lōk)
• Malay: kuman
• Maori: kitakita, moroiti tahumaero
• Mongolian: нян (mn) (njan)
• Nepali: please add this translation if you can
• Persian: جرم (fa) (jerm)
• Polish: zarazek (pl) m, mikrob (pl) m, bakcyl (pl) m
• Portuguese: germe (pt) m
• Romanian: germen (ro) m, microb (ro) m
• Russian: микро́б (ru) m (mikrób)
• Spanish: germen (es) m
• Swedish: mikrob (sv) c
• Thai: เชื้อ (th) (chʉ́ʉa), เชื้อโรค (th) (chʉ́ʉa-rôok)
• Tibetan: ནད་འབུ (nad 'bu)
• Ukrainian: мікро́б m (mikrób)
• Vietnamese: vi khuẩn (vi)

idea

• Catalan: germen (ca) m
• Dutch: kiem (nl) m
• Finnish: siemen (fi)
• French: germe (fr) m
• Galician: xerme m
• Georgian: ჩანასახი (čanasaxi)
• Hungarian: csíra (hu)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Japanese: 芽生え (mebae)
• Polish: zalążek (pl) m
• Portuguese: germe (pt) m
• Romanian: germen (ro) m, cauză (ro) f, sămânță (ro) f
• Russian: зача́ток (ru) m (začátok)
• Swedish: frö (sv) n

embryo of a seed

• Asturian: xerme m
• Catalan: germen (ca) m
• Finnish: itu (fi)
• Galician: xerme m
• Georgian: ბუტკო (buṭḳo)
• Portuguese: germe (pt) m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Romanian: germen (ro) m, embrion (ro) m
• Russian: за́вязь (ru) f (závjazʹ)
• Spanish: germen (es) m
• Ukrainian: за́в'язь f (závʺjazʹ)
• Vietnamese: mầm (vi)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Korean: ^{(please verify)} 세균 (ko) (segyun)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Mandarin: ^{(please verify)} 毒菌 (zh)

Verb

germ (third-person singular simple present germs, present participle germing, simple past and past participle germed)

1. To germinate.
   • (Can we date this quote by Sir Walter Scott and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?)

     O for a withering curse to blast the germing of their wicked machinations.

   • (Can we date this quote by Thomas Hardy and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?)

     Thus tempted, the lust to avenge me / Germed inly and grew.

2. (slang) To grow, as if parasitic.
   • (Can we date this quote by Black Eyed Peas and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?), Just Can't Get Enough

     I’m addicted, want to germ inside your love

See also

• bacteria
• microbe
• parasite
• virus

Further reading

• “germ”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “germ”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

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Kurdish

Etymology

From , from , from . Cognate with Persian گرم (garm) and English warm.

Adjective

1. warm

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Zazaki

Etymology

From Proto-Iranian *garmáh, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *gʰarmás, from Proto-Indo-European *gʷʰor-mó-s. Cognate with Persian گرم (garm) and English warm.

Adjective

germ

1. warm