nounWord forms: plural-cocci (-ˈkɒkaɪ, US English -ˈkɒksaɪ)
any spherical Gram-positive bacterium of the genus Staphylococcus, typically occurring in clusters and including many pathogenic species, causing boils, infection in wounds, and septicaemia: family Micrococcaceae
Often shortened to: staph
Derived forms
staphylococcal (ˌstæfɪləʊˈkɒkəl) or staphylococcic (ˌstæfɪləʊˈkɒkɪk, US English -ˈkɒksɪk)
adjective
Word origin
C19: from staphylo- (in the sense: like a bunch of grapes) + coccus so called because of their shape
Examples of 'staphylococci' in a sentence
staphylococci
One in five had the bacteria staphylococci, which can cause serious food poisoning if ingested.
The Sun (2016)
It was the only dish from which the staphylococci bacteria that he had been culturing had vanished.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Staphylococci bacteria can also cause infections if they get into cuts and grazes on the skin.