COCCUS (cocci)

Pronunciation (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does coccus mean? 

• COCCUS (noun)
  The noun COCCUS has 1 sense:

1. any spherical or nearly spherical bacteria

  Familiarity information: COCCUS used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• COCCUS (noun)

Meaning:

Any spherical or nearly spherical bacteria

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Synonyms:

cocci; coccus

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

eubacteria; eubacterium; true bacteria (a large group of bacteria having rigid cell walls; motile types have flagella)

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

staph; staphylococci; staphylococcus (spherical Gram-positive parasitic bacteria that tend to form irregular colonies; some cause boils or septicemia or infections)