antibiosis

noun

an·​ti·​bi·​o·​sis ˌan-tē-bī-ˈō-səs How to pronounce antibiosis (audio)
-bē-,
ˌan-ˌtī- How to pronounce antibiosis (audio)
: antagonistic association between organisms to the detriment of one of them or between one organism and a metabolic product of another

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French antibiose, from anti- anti- + -biose (in symbiose symbiosis)

Note: French antibiose and the corresponding adjective antibiotique were introduced by the French mycologist Jean-Paul Guillemin (1861-1932) in "Antibiose et symbiose," a paper read to the French Association for the Advancement of the Sciences on August 11, 1889 (Association française pour l'avancement des sciences, Compte rendu de la 18me session, Paris, 1889, 2. partie, Notes et Mémoires, Paris, 1890), pp. 525-43.

First Known Use

1889, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of antibiosis was in 1889

Dictionary Entries Near antibiosis

Cite this Entry

“Antibiosis.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/antibiosis. Accessed 4 Dec. 2024.

Medical Definition

antibiosis

noun
plural antibioses -ˌsēz How to pronounce antibiosis (audio)
: antagonistic association between organisms to the detriment of one of them or between one organism and a metabolic product of another

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