Where does “bacterium” come from?

Bacterium comes from Latin bacterium, from Ancient Greek βακτήριον, from Ancient Greek βάκτρον meaning rod or staff, from Proto-Indo-European bak-.

bacterium (English): A single celled organism with cell walls but no...

Definitions

  1. A single celled organism with cell walls but no...

Ancestry of “bacterium”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1New Latinbactērium
2Ancient GreekβακτήριονSynonym of βακτηρία
3Ancient Greekβακτηρίαrod, staff, cane; baton
4Proto-Indo-Europeanbaḱ-club, pointed stick, peg; pointed stick, peg

Words derived from “bacterium

Every word from Proto-Indo-European baḱ-Every word from Ancient Greek βακτηρίαEvery word from Ancient Greek βακτήριον
bacterium — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer