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A hint of the Greek word bios, meaning "life", can be seen in microbe. Microbes, or microorganisms, include bacteria, protozoa, fungi, algae, amoebas, and slime molds. Many people think of microbes as simply the causes of disease, but every human is actually the host to billions of microbes, and most of them are essential to our life. Much research is now going into possible microbial sources of future energy; algae looks particularly promising, as do certain newly discovered or created microbes that can produce cellulose, to be turned into ethanol and other biofuels.
Examples of microbe in a Sentence
Paul Smaglik, Discover Magazine, 14 Feb. 2025
Ogino says that more research is needed to understand why this association exists, but the results suggested that yogurt may be linked to a protective effect by positively changing the gut microbiome (the ecosystem of microbes that live in your intestines).
—Tom Gavin, EverydayHealth.com, 14 Feb. 2025
And up to 30% of cancers, like cervical cancer, are driven by microbes or viruses.
—Erika Edwards, NBC News, 1 Feb. 2025
The biologist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution won a postdoctoral research grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to study how DNA sharing among microbes shapes their evolution.
—Jonathan Lambert, NPR, 31 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for microbe 
Dictionary Entries Near microbe
Cite this Entry
“Microbe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/microbe. Accessed 23 Feb. 2025.
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microbe
noun
Medical Definition
microbe
noun
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