Microbially

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. In a manner related to or caused by tiny living organisms such as bacteria or fungi; involving the action or influence of microbes in a process or environment; characterized by biological activity at the microscopic level
2. Pertaining to or resulting from microorganisms that are invisible to the naked eye; describing interactions, effects, or functions carried out by microbial entities; connected with microscopic life forms in biological or ecological contexts
3. With reference to minute living beings like bacteria that affect chemical or biological changes; indicating processes or conditions where microbes play a significant role; concerning the presence or activity of microscopic organisms in various settings

Etymology: "Microbially" is a plain formation: the adjective "microbial" with the adverbial ending "-ly" added. The adjective itself is built from "microbe" plus the suffix "-ial," which comes from Latin "-ālis" by way of Old French and Middle English, and "microbe" is a coinage from Greek roots meaning "small" and "life." Its history is therefore a stacking of two suffixes onto a modern scientific noun. The adverbial ending has an older lineage than the rest. "-ly" descends from Old English "-līċe," itself rooted in the Germanic word for "body" or "form," which gave English words like "like" and "lich." Over centuries "-līċe" wore down to "-ly" in Middle English, and it now attaches freely to adjectives like "microbial" to produce adverbs describing how something is done or where a condition holds.

Synonyms: microbially