pneumococcal
|pneu-mo-coc-cal|
🇺🇸
/ˌnuːmoʊˈkɑkəl/
🇬🇧
/ˌnjuːməˈkɒkəl/
related to pneumococcus (lung bacterium)
Etymology
'pneumococcal' originates from Neo-Latin, specifically from 'pneumococcus' + the adjectival suffix '-al', where Greek 'pneumon' meant 'lung' and 'kokkos' meant 'berry (seed)'.
'pneumococcal' developed from the medical Neo-Latin noun 'pneumococcus' (a coinage from Greek 'pneumon' + 'kokkos'), with the English adjectival suffix '-al' added to form the adjective meaning 'relating to pneumococcus'.
Initially the root term referred specifically to the bacterium (pneumococcus); over time adjectival and broader uses developed to describe diseases, vaccines, and other things related to that bacterium.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a pneumococcus (a bacterium of the species Streptococcus pneumoniae) or, less commonly, an infection caused by that bacterium.
Pneumococcal remains a leading cause of bacterial meningitis in young children in some regions.
Synonyms
Adjective 1
relating to or caused by the bacterium pneumococcus (Streptococcus pneumoniae); used to describe diseases, vaccines, or tests associated with that bacterium (e.g., pneumococcal pneumonia, pneumococcal vaccine).
The pneumococcal vaccine protects against several serotypes of pneumococcal disease.
Last updated: 2025/11/14 23:50