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antibacterial

adjective an·ti·bac·te·ri·al \ ˌan-tē-bak-ˈtir-ē-əl , ˌan-ˌtī- \
Updated on: 25 Apr 2018
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Definition of antibacterial

: directed or effective against bacteria
  • antibacterial soap
  • an antibacterial drug
—

antibacterial

noun
    • In an effort to develop new antifungals, scientists are boning up on previous research on antibacterials.
    • —Ellen Licking

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Recent Examples of antibacterial from the Web

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'antibacterial.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of antibacterial

1879

in the meaning defined above

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Medical Dictionary

1

antibacterial

adjective an·ti·bac·te·ri·al \ ˌant-i-bak-ˈtir-ē-əl , ˌan-ˌtī- \

medical Definition of antibacterial

: directed or effective against bacteria
2

antibacterial

noun

medical Definition of antibacterial

: an antibacterial agent

Learn More about antibacterial

  1. See words that rhyme with antibacterial

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antibacterial

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