germs
germs — 名詞
1. tiny living things, too small to see without a microscope, that can enter the bo
病菌；細菌
造成疾病的微小生物，肉眼看不見
tiny living things, too small to see without a microscope, that can enter the body and make people ill — most often bacteria or viruses.
Wash your hands with soap before dinner to get rid of germs.
晚餐前用肥皂洗手，把病菌洗掉。
collocation: get rid of germs
Noa caught a cold after the children at preschool passed germs around.
Noa 在幼兒園被小朋友傳來傳去的病菌傳染，後來感冒了。
collocation: pass germs around (informal spreading)
The nurse wiped the counter with bleach to kill any germs left from the patient.
護理師用漂白水擦拭檯面，把病人留下的細菌殺光。
collocation: kill germs
Doorknobs in shared offices are covered in germs by the end of the day.
共用辦公室裡的門把，到了下班時都沾滿病菌。
passive scene: surfaces covered in germs
Emre always sneezes into his elbow so he doesn't spread germs to his classmates.
Emre 總是對著手肘打噴嚏，避免把病菌傳給同學。
collocation: spread germs to [people]
- spread germs
- kill germs
- carry germs
- germs on your hands
- germs in the air
文法句型
germs on/in [surface or body part]
spread/carry/catch germs
用法筆記
Used in everyday speech rather than scientific writing; researchers prefer 'bacteria', 'viruses', or 'pathogens'. Almost always plural — the singular 'germ' in this sense sounds odd unless paired with a modifier (e.g. 'a stomach germ').
常見錯誤
2. the first small signs or starting points of something — like an idea, plan, or m
萌芽；雛形
後來發展成大事物的最初徵兆
the first small signs or starting points of something — like an idea, plan, or movement — that later grows much bigger or more important.
The germs of the protest movement appeared in small student meetings two years before.
這場抗議運動的萌芽，早在兩年前的學生小型聚會就出現了。
pattern: the germs of [a movement] + later growth
Élise saw the germs of a novel in the strange story her grandfather told her.
Élise 在祖父說的奇怪故事裡，看見了一本小說的雛形。
pattern: see/find the germs of [an idea] in [a source]
Many great companies started from the germs of a single conversation over coffee.
許多偉大的公司，都是從一場咖啡閒聊的萌芽中發展起來的。
figurative: small beginning growing into something large
Eshe wrote down the germs of every new design idea in a small notebook by her bed.
Eshe 把每個新設計構想的雛形，都寫進床邊的小筆記本裡。
- the germs of an idea
- the germs of a movement
- contain the germs of
- beginnings
common everyday word; less suggestive of organic growth
- seeds
more vivid metaphor; emphasizes that it will grow if nurtured
- origins
more formal; focuses on the source point rather than growth
文法句型
the germs of [an idea/movement/something]
用法筆記
Always plural in this sense, and almost always followed by 'of + noun'. Distinguish from sense 1: this is figurative and abstract; the topic is ideas, plans, art, or movements, never illness.
常見錯誤
3. in biology, tiny pieces of living material — such as fertilised egg cells or pla
胚芽；原基
能發育成完整生物的原始細胞組織
in biology, tiny pieces of living material — such as fertilised egg cells or plant embryos — that hold the potential to develop into a whole creature, or into specific body parts like a leaf or limb.
In a wheat seed, the germs grow into the young plant once the seed begins to sprout.
在小麥種子裡，胚芽會在種子發芽後長成幼苗。
pattern: germs grow into [organism]
Ignacio studied how the germs inside a frog egg slowly form the heart and brain.
Ignacio 研究青蛙卵裡的胚芽如何慢慢形成心臟和大腦。
pattern: germs inside [an egg/cell] form [organ]
Scientists use very thin needles to remove the germs from each tiny egg cell.
科學家用極細的針，從每一顆小小的卵細胞裡取出胚芽。
passive context: germs removed from cells
Plant germs can stay alive for many years before they begin to grow.
植物胚芽可以存活好多年，才開始發芽生長。
collocation: germs stay alive / begin to grow
- wheat germ
- germs of an organism
- germs develop into
- embryos
in plants and animals; refers to a slightly later developmental stage
- germ cells
more precise modern term used in biology textbooks
文法句型
germs of [an organism]
germs from which [tissue/organism] develops
用法筆記
Specialist biology term and very rare outside textbooks or research writing. Distinguish from sense 1 by topic: this sense is about cells that grow into new life, not microbes that cause disease.
同根字
- germ名詞B1
- germinate動詞C1
- germination名詞C1
- germy形容詞C2
常見搭配
名詞搭配
- cold germs
- flu germs
- stomach germs
- wheat germ
常用片語
- spread germs
- carry germs
- kill germs
- catch germs
- the germs of an idea
介系詞搭配
- germs on [surface]
- germs in [air/water]
- germs from [source]