Hypertext Webster Gateway: "Bacterium"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Bacterium \Bac*te"ri*um\, n.; pl. {Bacteria}. [NL., fr. Gr. ?,
?, a staff: cf. F. bact['e]rie. ] (Biol.)
A microscopic vegetable organism, belonging to the class
Alg[ae], usually in the form of a jointed rodlike filament,
and found in putrefying organic infusions. Bacteria are
destitute of chlorophyll, and are the smallest of microscopic
organisms. They are very widely diffused in nature, and
multiply with marvelous rapidity, both by fission and by
spores. Certain species are active agents in fermentation,
while others appear to be the cause of certain infectious
diseases. See {Bacillus}.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
bacterium
n : 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
plants [syn: {bacteria}]
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