Streptococci

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)

streptococci
    n 1: spherical Gram-positive bacteria occurring in pairs or
         chains; cause e.g. scarlet fever and tonsillitis [syn:
         {streptococcus}, {streptococci}, {strep}]

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Streptococcus \Strep`to*coc"cus\, n.; pl. {Streptococci}. [NL.,
   fr. Gr. ? pliant, curved + ? a grain, seed.] (Biol.)
   A long or short chain of micrococci, more or less curved.
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