| Gram-positive | |
| —adj | |
| designating bacteria that retain the violet stain in Gram's method | |
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
| a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes. |
gram-positive or Gram-positive (grām'pŏz'ĭ-tĭv)
adj.
Of, relating to, or being a bacterium that retains the violet stain used in Gram's method.
| gram-positive
Relating to a group of bacteria that turn a dark-blue color when subjected to a laboratory staining method known as Gram's method. Gram-positive bacteria have relatively thick cell walls and are generally sensitive to the destructive effects of antibiotics or the actions of the body's immune cells. Gram-positive bacteria include beneficial nitrogen-fixing bacteria in soil, as well as the bacteria that cause anthrax, botulism, leprosy, tuberculosis, scarlet fever, and strep throat. Compare gram-negative. |