Where does “staphylococci” come from?
Staphylococci comes from English staphylococcus, combining English -coccus with Ancient Greek κόκκος meaning berry or grain.
staphylococci (English): plural of staphylococcus
Definitions
- plural of staphylococcus
Ancestry of “staphylococci”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | staphylococcus | A spherical gram-positive parasitic bacterium of... |
| 2 | English | -coccus | any spherical microorganism |
| 3 | New Latin | coccus | — |
| 4 | Latin | coccum | a scarlet berry of various plants; a gall of... |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | κόκκος | grain, seed, kernel; The kermes oak; insects of... |