Bacteriologic

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Relating to or concerned with bacteria and the study or examination of bacteria for scientific or medical purposes
2. Pertaining to the microbiological aspects involving bacteria and the techniques used to detect, identify, or analyze bacterial organisms
3. Connected with the branch of microbiology that deals with bacteria, including their classification, behavior, and roles in health and disease

Etymology: The root is a Greek word meaning "little staff." The German naturalist Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg named these microorganisms "bacterium," from the Greek "baktērion," a diminutive of "baktron," a walking stick, because the rod-shaped cells looked like tiny sticks under the microscope. The "-logy" ending comes from Greek "logos," meaning study or discourse, so bacteriology is literally the study of those little rods. The "-ic" suffix turns it into an adjective meaning relating to that study or its methods. "Bacteriological" is the more common adjective today, formed with the same root plus "-al," but both forms describe the same field.

Synonyms: bacteriological, microbiological