Where does “bacterial” come from?
Bacterial is the adjective form of bacterium, from Ancient Greek βακτήριον, derived from βάκτρον meaning rod or staff, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European bak-.
bacterial (English): Of, relating to, or caused by bacteria
Definitions
- Of, relating to, or caused by bacteria
Ancestry of “bacterial”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | -ál | — |
| 2 | English | aldehyde | Any of a large class of reactive organic... |
| 3 | German | Aldehyd | aldehyde |
| 4 | Latin | alcohol | kohl, collyrium, stibium; any other powder... |
| 5 | Andalusian Arabic | كُحُول | — |
| 6 | Arabic | كحل | antimony; kohl, stibnite; black coloring of the... |
| 7 | Arabic | كُحْل | antimony; kohl, stibnite |
| 8 | Akkadian | guḫlum | — |
Words derived from “bacterial”