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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
Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 11 Sep. 2025
And maybe that meal has been excreted by a microbe.
—Bill Chappell, NPR, 10 Sep. 2025
Probiotics are living organisms that have health benefits through their addition to the mix of microbes in the digestive tract (the gut microbiome).
—Amber J. Tresca, Verywell Health, 10 Sep. 2025
Even more striking, the cement continues to function after the microbes die, and researchers can bring it back to life with nutrients.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 10 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for microbe
Cite this Entry
“Microbe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/microbe. Accessed 12 Sep. 2025.
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microbe
noun
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microbe
noun
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