coccus

coc·cus
C3O1C3C3U1S1
/ˈkɒk.əs/US[ˈkʰɑkəs]

noun

Any approximately spherical bacterium.

Similar
coquecocci
OriginNew Latin coccu ← Latin coccum ← Ancient Greek κόκκος (kókkos) →
RareScrabble 12
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Meanings

nouncoccus (plural cocci)

plural cocci

  1. Any approximately spherical bacterium.
  2. One of the carpels or seed-vessels of a dry fruit.

    Synonyms: coque

Synonyms & antonyms

nounOne of the carpels or seed-vessels of a dry fruit.

Similar
coque

More synonyms by meaning

nounany spherical or nearly spherical bacteria

Similar
cocci
Broader
eubacteriaeubacteriumtrue bacteria
Also see
coccicoque

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Ancient Greekκόκκος (kókkos)
  2. Latincoccum
  3. New Latincoccu
  4. Englishcoccus

Learned borrowing from New Latin coccus, from Latin coccum (“a berry yielding a scarlet dye”), borrowed from Ancient Greek κόκκος (kókkos, “grain, seed, berry”), possibly from Pre-Greek. First attested in 1765.

More words from New Latin

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian ко́ка
  • ко́ка (kóka)a bacterium of spherical shape
Catalan coc
  • coca bacterium of spherical shape
Chinese Mandarin 球菌
  • 球菌 (qiújūn)a bacterium of spherical shape
Czech kok
  • koka bacterium of spherical shape
Dutch coccus
  • coccusa bacterium of spherical shape
Finnish kokki, pallobakteeri
  • kokkia bacterium of spherical shape
  • pallobakteeria bacterium of spherical shape
French coccus
  • coccusa bacterium of spherical shape
German Kokke, Kokkus
  • Kokkea bacterium of spherical shape
  • Kokkusa bacterium of spherical shape
Hindi गोलाणु
  • गोलाणु (golāṇu)a bacterium of spherical shape
Italian còcco
  • còccoa bacterium of spherical shape
Japanese 球菌
  • 球菌 (kyūkin)a bacterium of spherical shape
Korean 구균
  • 구균 (gugyun)a bacterium of spherical shape
Polish ziarniak
  • ziarniaka bacterium of spherical shape
Portuguese coco
  • cocoa bacterium of spherical shape
Romanian coc
  • coca bacterium of spherical shape
Russian ко́кк
  • ко́кк (kókk)a bacterium of spherical shape
Spanish coco
  • cocoa bacterium of spherical shape
Swedish kock
  • kocka bacterium of spherical shape
Tagalog bilugishay
  • bilugishaya bacterium of spherical shape
Vietnamese cầu khuẩn
  • cầu khuẩna bacterium of spherical shape

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with coccus

streptococcusenterococcuscryptococcuspneumococcusechinococcusascococcus-coccuscytococcusdiplococcusmacrococcusprotococcus
All rhymes →

Sounds the same

caucus (cot–caught merger)
Cite this entry
APA

coccus. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/coccus

MLA

“coccus.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/coccus. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “coccus,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/coccus.

Source: coccus on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.