Did you know?
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
Ryan Brennan, Miami Herald, 17 June 2026
What the gut microbiome test results showed The companies gave very different answers about which microbes were present, even though every sample was identical.
—Ryan Brennan, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 17 June 2026
The team also built a version of the microbe that releases human IL-10.
—Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 16 June 2026
The microbe lives under the eyelid and keeps producing the anti-inflammatory protein over time.
—Samantha Agate, Kansas City Star, 16 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for microbe
Cite this Entry
“Microbe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/microbe. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
microbe
noun
Medical Definition
microbe
noun
