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germ

noun
🔊/dʒɜːm/
🔊/dʒɜːrm/
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  1. [countable, usually plural] a very small living thing that can cause infection and disease微生物；细菌；病菌
    • Disinfectant kills germs.消毒剂可杀菌。🔊🔊
    • Dirty hands can be a breeding ground for germs.脏手可能滋生病菌。🔊🔊
    Extra Examples
    • Cracks and scratches in work surfaces can harbour germs.操作台的裂缝和刮痕都会藏着细菌。
    • The epidemic was caused by a particularly virulent flu germ.这一流行病是由一种致病力强的流感病毒引起的。
    Topics Biologyb2, Illnessb2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • deadly
    • drug-resistant
    • resistant
    • …
    verb + germ
    • carry
    • spread
    • destroy
    • …
    germ + noun
    • warfare
    See full entry
  2. [singular] germ of something an early stage of the development of something起源；发端；萌芽
    • Here was the germ of a brilliant idea.一个绝妙的主意就是从这里萌发的。🔊🔊
    • The germ of the town was a single house near the river.镇上的细菌是河边的一所房子。
  3. [countable] (biology生物) the part of a plant or an animal that can develop into a new one胚芽；胚原基；芽孢；胚胎
    • The germ is the embryo of the new plant.胚芽是新植物的胚芽。
    see also wheatgerm
    4. Word Originlate Middle English (in sense (3)): via Old French from Latin germen ‘seed, sprout’. Sense (1) dates from the late 19th cent.