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。
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。
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。
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。
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。
- 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。
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。
- 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.