Is “bacteria” plural or singular?
Bacteria is plural; bacterium is singular. What’s with the word bacteria, and why does it behave the way it does from its singular to plural form? Keep reading.
What the definition of bacteria?
According to the Online Dictionary, the word bacteria is understood as:
Bacteria are small single-celled organisms. Bacteria are found almost everywhere on Earth and are vital to the planet’s ecosystems.
What’s the plural of bacteria?
The plural of bacteria is bacteria. Bacterium is singular.
Nouns that end in -um / -a
| singular | plural |
|---|---|
| phenomenon | phenomena or phenomenons |
| criterion | criteria |
| bacterion | bacteria |
| medium | media |
| datum | data |
| spectrum | spectra or spectrums |
Practice using the verb in different tenses with example sentences to memorize the correct forms.
“Bacteria”, used in sentences
1. Some bacteria are entomopathogens.
2. Then a starter culture of lactic streptococci and lactobacilli bacteria is added.
3. Numbers of bacteria were measured using soil dilution plating on soil extract agar media.
4. Foods containing these bacteria include yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut, miso, and tempeh.
5. In the low-oxygen conditions there, thick mats of sulfate-reducing bacteria grew on the carbonate rocks.
Examples of bacterium in context
1. The endotoxic activity of the live bacterium was studied by feeding this to the worms in the lawn.
2. The bacterium contains a plasmid, a circular piece of DNA that holds the gene and promoter sequence.
3. This bacterium causes infections in the genital tract that may disseminate to organs.
4. Lyme disease is an infectious illness caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi.
5. At one time it was believed that the bacterium lived in the soil like its relative that causes galls on other plants.
Origin of the word bacteria
From Etymonline on bacteria:
Unicellular microorganisms which lack an organized nucleus,” and sometimes cause disease, 1847, plural of Modern Latin bacterium.
What’s the difference between they’re, their, and there?
Sources
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