Meaning & use
probiotic
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountablemedical
A live bacterium or yeast, found in some foods and supplements, that is taken to support healthy digestion.
Grammar: Often plural: she takes probiotics daily.
Patterns
- take a probiotic
My doctor suggested I take a probiotic after the antibiotics.
Yogurt is a popular source of probiotics.
Some people add a probiotic to their breakfast routine.
adjectivebefore a nounmedical
Containing or relating to live bacteria that are claimed to benefit the body, especially the gut.
Grammar: Usually before a noun: a probiotic drink.
Patterns
- a probiotic something
She drinks a probiotic yogurt every day.
The label promises probiotic benefits for digestion.
Kimchi is a probiotic food.
Word forms
| plural | probiotics |
|---|
Common combinations
- take probiotics
- I take probiotics every morning.
- probiotic yogurt
- He eats probiotic yogurt for breakfast.
- probiotic supplement
- A probiotic supplement can help after illness.
- probiotic bacteria
- The drink contains probiotic bacteria.
- probiotic foods
- Sauerkraut and kefir are probiotic foods.
- probiotics and prebiotics
- Probiotics and prebiotics work together for gut health.
Synonyms and how they differ
- good bacteria
- Good bacteria is the everyday phrase, while probiotic is the more technical term used on labels.
- live cultures
- Live cultures is common on food packaging and refers to the living organisms in the product, not to the whole product.
- supplement
- A supplement is any added nutrient or pill, while a probiotic is specifically live microbes.
Opposites
Word family
- prebiotic noun
- a food ingredient that feeds good bacteria
- antibiotic noun
- a medicine that kills bacteria
- biotic adjective
- relating to living things
- microbiome noun
- the community of microbes living in the body
Commonly confused: probiotic or prebiotic? probiotic or antibiotic?
probiotic vs prebiotic
A prebiotic is food for the bacteria already in your gut, while a probiotic is the live bacteria itself.
probiotic vs antibiotic
An antibiotic kills bacteria, whereas a probiotic adds helpful ones.
Practice
After a course of antibiotics, my doctor told me to eat yogurt with a ______ to help my gut.
Choose one answer.
A probiotic is live bacteria that helps the gut. An antibiotic would kill more bacteria, and a prebiotic is only food for them.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “probiotic”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.