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bacillus

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ba⋅cil⋅lus

  [buh-sil-uhs]
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–noun, plural -cil⋅li  [-sil-ahy] .
1. any rod-shaped or cylindrical bacterium of the genus Bacillus, comprising spore-producing bacteria.
2. (formerly) any bacterium.
Origin:
1880–85; < LL, var. of L bacillum (dim. of baculum) staff, walking stick
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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ba·cil·lus   (bə-sĭl'əs)   
n.   pl. ba·cil·li (-sĭl'ī')

  1. Any of various rod-shaped, spore-forming, aerobic bacteria of the genus Bacillus that often occur in chains and include B. anthracis, the causative agent of anthrax.

  2. Any of various bacteria, especially a rod-shaped bacterium.


[Late Latin, diminutive of Latin baculum, rod; see bak- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

bacillus 
1883, from Mod.L., "little rod," from L.L. bacillum, dim. of baculum "a stick," from PIE base *bak- "staff," also source of Gk. bakterion (see bacteria). Introduced as a term in bacteriology 1853 by Ger. botanist Ferdinand Cohn (1828-98).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: ba·cil·lus
Pronunciation: b&-'sil-&s
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural ba·cil·li /-"Ialso -E/
1 a capitalized : a genus of rod-shaped gram-positive endospore-producing usually aerobic bacteria of the family Bacillaceae that include manysaprophytes and some parasites (as B. anthracis of anthrax) b : any bacterium of the genus Bacillus; broadly : a straight rod-shaped bacterium
2 : BACTERIUM; especially : a disease-producing bacterium
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

bacillus ba·cil·lus (bə-sĭl'əs)
n. pl. ba·cil·li (-sĭl'ī')

  1. Any of various rod-shaped, usually gram-positive aerobic bacteria of the genus Bacillus that often occur in chains and include Bacillus anthracis, the causative agent of anthrax.

  2. Any of various bacteria, especially a rod-shaped bacterium.

Bacillus (bə-sĭl'əs)
n.
A genus of rod-shaped gram-positive bacteria capable of producing endospores.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Science Dictionary
bacillus   (bə-sĭl'əs)  Pronunciation Key 
Plural bacilli (bə-sĭl'ī')
Any of various pathogenic bacteria, especially one that is rod-shaped.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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