Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
C. diphtheriae

C. diphtheriae

9.5
A type of bacteria that causes diphtheria in people
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : C. diphtheriae
  • The vaccine prevents infection by C. diphtheriae and thereby protects against diphtheria.

Examples

  • C. diphtheriae is responsible for the symptoms of diphtheria in infected individuals.

  • Doctors identified C. diphtheriae in the patient's throat.

  • Doctors identified the presence of C. diphtheriae in the patient's throat swab.

  • The infection was caused by C. diphtheriae.

  • C. diphtheriae is responsible for the symptoms of diphtheria in infected individuals.

  • Doctors identified the presence of C. diphtheriae in the patient's throat swab.

  • The vaccine prevents infection by C. diphtheriae and thereby protects against diphtheria.

Synonyms

Corynebacterium diphtheriae
vsC. diphtheriae
  • Specialized
8.9

A type of bacteria that causes diphtheria in people

is the abbreviated species label rather than the full scientific name
Klebs-Loeffler bacillus
vsC. diphtheriae
  • Archaic
9.9

A type of germ that causes the disease diphtheria, often in the throat

is the modern scientific species name rather than the eponymous term

Surface Forms

C. diphtheriae singular
C. diphtheriae plural

Morphology

C. + diphtheriae

This is a Latin binomial scientific name (abbreviated genus + species) rather than a compositional English phrase; the parts ('C.' as an abbreviation and 'diphtheriae' as a Latin form) are not ordinary English words whose meanings combine to yield 'a bacterium that causes diphtheria.' Understanding it requires specialized biological/taxonomic knowledge, so a B1 learner who only knows the surface constituents would not be able to infer the meaning.

Etymology

C. diphtheriae gets its name from diphtheriae, a Greek word for 'leather', because the disease makes a thick, leather-like patch in the throat that can block breathing. So the name points to the germ that causes diphtheria.