Oligodynamic

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Describing a condition in which minimal amounts of specific metals have a noteworthy ability to kill or inhibit bacteria and other microorganisms
2. Relating to the effect that very small quantities of certain elements can have on biological organisms, especially for antimicrobial purposes
3. Pertaining to the property where tiny amounts of metals can suppress or destroy microorganisms

Etymology: "Oligodynamic" is a compound built from two Greek elements: "oligos," meaning "few" or "little," and "dynamis," meaning "power" or "force." The first element survives in English as the prefix "oligo-," used in technical coinages for something small in amount or number, while "dynamic" comes from the same Greek root, which gave English words about force and energy. Put together, the word literally describes a small amount of power, and in the sense of the metal effect, that power is the capacity to act against living cells. English "dynamic" entered the language through French "dynamique," itself drawn from the Greek "dunamikos," meaning "of power." The "-ikos" ending is the Greek adjective suffix that turns a noun into a description, so "dunamikos" means roughly "relating to power." Scientists needed a name for the metal effect, and they combined the two Greek elements to say that a tiny quantity of power, here from metal ions, is enough to suppress microbes.