What does "streptococcus" mean?

A spherical, gram-positive bacterium of the genus Streptococcus. Although commonly found benignly in the human mouth and gut, and though many species are non-pathogenic, other species can cause diseases including strep throat and more serious conditions.

What is a synonym for "streptococcus"?

Common synonyms include: strep, adenovirus, aerobe, aerobic bacteria, amebic, amoeba.

Streptococcus

noun

noun ·4 syllables ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1
A spherical, gram-positive bacterium of the genus Streptococcus. Although commonly found benignly in the human mouth and gut, and though many species are non-pathogenic, other species can cause diseases including strep throat and more serious conditions.
2
spherical Gram-positive bacteria occurring in pairs or chains; cause e.g. scarlet fever and tonsillitis wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

strep adenovirus aerobe aerobic bacteria amebic amoeba

Example

More examples

"What are the risks of group B streptococcus (GBS) infection during pregnancy?"

Etymology

Morphologically a compound of strepto- + -coccus. They grow in chains or pairs, thus the name — from Ancient Greek στρεπτός (streptós, “twisted, pliant”), like a chain. Compare the genus name Streptococcus.

Related phrases

strep throat gram positive strep throat

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.