bacteria

Where does the word "bacteria" come from? It comes from Greek bakterion, and was adopted directly into English (1840s).

Bacteria’s story begins in Greek: bakterion meant “a small staff, a small rod.” Literally a little staff or rod, describing the rod-like shape of many microbes. It reached English by 1840s as bacteria. Christian Ehrenberg coined 'Bacterium' in 1828 from Greek for 'little rod', after their shape. Today, bacteria means single-celled microorganisms found in nearly every environment.

1. Stage 1 · Greek · ancient bakterion "a small staff, a small rod", literally a little staff or rod, describing the rod-like shape of many microbes.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1840s bacteria "single-celled microorganisms", Christian Ehrenberg coined 'Bacterium' in 1828 from Greek for 'little rod', after their shape.