germ theory

noun

: a theory in medicine: infections, contagious diseases, and various other conditions result from the action of microorganisms

Examples of germ theory in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Thus, in an era when the germ theory of disease held about equal sway with theories involving the humors, folks knew tariffs were just regressive taxes. Andrew Leahey, Forbes, 23 Oct. 2024 Kellogg’s thinking on constipation, that anything less than three bowel movements a day risked dangerous intestinal putrefaction, was shaped by the emerging germ theory of disease and the ascent of bacteriology as a discipline through the closing decades of the 19th century. Elsa Richardson, TIME, 3 Oct. 2024 Microbes as Medicine Ever since scientists realized that microscopic organisms can cause illness – what’s called the 19th-century germ theory of disease – humanity has been on a quest to keep infectious agents out of our bodies. Bill Sullivan, Discover Magazine, 12 Aug. 2024 But preventing and treating disease by co-opting the very microbes that threaten us has a history that long predates germ theory. Bill Sullivan, Discover Magazine, 12 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for germ theory 

Word History

First Known Use

1863, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of germ theory was in 1863

Dictionary Entries Near germ theory

Cite this Entry

“Germ theory.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/germ%20theory. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

germ theory

noun
: the theory that infectious and contagious disease results from the action of living things

Medical Definition

germ theory

noun
: a theory in medicine: infections, contagious diseases, and various other conditions (as suppurative lesions) result from the action of microorganisms

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