Meaning & use
Germ
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A microorganism, especially one that causes disease, or the earliest form or origin of an idea or development.
See it in a sentence
Washing your hands helps stop the spread of germs.
The argument they had that night was the germ of the novel's central plot.
A note on using this word
The figurative sense, meaning 'the beginning or seed of something,' comes from the same Latin root, 'germen,' meaning 'sprout' or 'bud.'
Words with a similar meaning
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Another way to use it
2. noun
The earliest form or origin from which something develops.
That conversation was the germ of what became their business plan.
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