Main Entry:

strep·to·coc·cus

Pronunciation:

\-ˈkä-kəs\

Function:

noun

Inflected Form(s):

plural strep·to·coc·ci \-ˈkä-ˌkī, -(ˌ)kē; -ˈkäk-ˌsī, -(ˌ)sē\

Etymology:

New Latin

Date:

1877

: any of a genus (Streptococcus) of spherical or ovoid chiefly nonmotile and parasitic gram-positive bacteria that divide only in one plane, occur in pairs or chains, and include important pathogens of humans and domestic animals ; broadly : a coccus occurring in chains