Library / English Dictionary

MICROORGANISM

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Any organism of microscopic size

Synonyms:

micro-organism; microorganism

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Hypernyms ("microorganism" is a kind of...):

being; organism (a living thing that has (or can develop) the ability to act or function independently)

Meronyms (parts of "microorganism"):

pilus (hairlike structure especially on the surface of a cell or microorganism)

Domain category:

flora; plant; plant life ((botany) a living organism lacking the power of locomotion)

animal; animate being; beast; brute; creature; fauna (a living organism characterized by voluntary movement)

Domain member category:

virulence; virulency (extreme harmfulness (as the capacity of a microorganism to cause disease))

transmitter; vector (any agent (person or animal or microorganism) that carries and transmits a disease)

bacteremia; bacteriaemia; bacteriemia (transient presence of bacteria (or other microorganisms) in the blood)

highly infective ((of a microorganism) extremely infective)

motile ((of spores or microorganisms) capable of movement)

immotile; nonmotile ((of spores or microorganisms) not capable of movement)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "microorganism"):

monad ((biology) a single-celled microorganism (especially a flagellate protozoan))

intestinal flora (harmless microorganisms (as Escherichia coli) that inhabit the intestinal tract and are essential for its normal functioning)

virus ((virology) ultramicroscopic infectious agent that replicates itself only within cells of living hosts; many are pathogenic; a piece of nucleic acid (DNA or RNA) wrapped in a thin coat of protein)

moneran; moneron (organisms that typically reproduce by asexual budding or fission and whose nutritional mode is absorption or photosynthesis or chemosynthesis)

bacteria; bacterium ((microbiology) single-celled or noncellular spherical or spiral or rod-shaped organisms lacking chlorophyll that reproduce by fission; important as pathogens and for biochemical properties; taxonomy is difficult; often considered to be plants)

bug; germ; microbe (a minute life form (especially a disease-causing bacterium); the term is not in technical use)

pathogen (any disease-producing agent (especially a virus or bacterium or other microorganism))

protoctist (any of the unicellular protists)

protist; protistan (free-living or colonial organisms with diverse nutritional and reproductive modes)

microflora (microscopic plants; bacteria are often considered to be microflora)

Credits

 Context examples: 

Nonsusceptibility to the pathogenic effects of foreign microorganisms or antigenic substances as a result of antibody secretions of the mucous membranes.

(Mucosal Immunity, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)

A microorganism, often a bacterium, that is not susceptible to standard antimicrobial therapies.

(Multi-Drug Resistant Organism, NCI Thesaurus)

Processes by which certain microorganisms and toxins are attracted to nervous tissue.

(Neurotropism, NCI Thesaurus)

This protein plays a role in the defense of the gastrointestinal and respiratory tracts from microorganism infection.

(Mucin-5AC, NCI Thesaurus)

Macrophages surround and kill microorganisms, ingest foreign material, remove dead cells, and boost immune responses.

(Monocyte, NCI Dictionary)

A collection or collectivity of microorganisms.

(Microbiome, NCI Thesaurus)

A sterilization process that uses microwave radiation to kill microorganisms.

(Microwave Radiation Sterilization, NCI Thesaurus)

A sterilization process that uses nonionizing radiation at frequencies between 300MHz and 300GHz in the microwave region to kill microorganisms.

(Microwave Radiation Sterilization, Food and Drug Administration)

Since Mars once had flowing water, scientists say it is possible that similar microorganisms may be waiting there for the next opportunity to continue life.

(Scientists: Life Can Thrive in Most Extreme Environments, George Putic/VOA)

A designation of nonsusceptible does not necessarily mean that a resistance mechanism(s) exists in the microorganism.

(Antimicrobial Nonsusceptibility Result, NCI Thesaurus)