English pronunciation · Words Starting with B
Bacillus Pronunciation
Bacillus is pronounced buh-SI-luhs, IPA /bəˈsɪləs/.
buh-SI-luhs
US /bəˈsɪləs/ · UK /ˈbæsɪləs/
Syllables: buh · SI · luhs (3 syllables, stress on syllable 2)
noun: A rod-shaped bacterium, and the genus name for a large group of them.
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Bacillus in a Sentence
- The lab identified a bacillus in the water sample.
- Bacillus subtilis lives harmlessly in soil.
- Anthrax is caused by a bacillus, not a virus.
Common Mispronunciations of Bacillus
Not ba-SIL-oos
The ending is a dull luhs, not a Latin oos, since English reshapes borrowed endings to its own pattern. The plural bacilli does keep a long ee.
Not BA-ki-luhs
A c standing in front of an i softens to a plain s. Only before a, o or u does it hold the hard k of cat.
Tip: The two accents disagree about the beat. American dictionaries give buh-SI-luhs and British ones put the weight at the front, BA-si-luhs.
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