compound microscope

noun

1. an optical instrument for forming magnified images of small objects, consisting of an objective lens with a very short focal length and an eyepiece with a longer focal length, both lenses mounted in the same tube.

compound microscope

noun

1. an instrument for magnifying small objects, consisting of a lens of short focal length for forming an image that is further magnified by a second lens of longer focal length Compare simple microscope

Word History and Origins

Origin of compound microscope¹

First recorded in 1865–70

Example Sentences

Galileo had his telescope, Louis Pasteur had a compound microscope and American scientists today have … the treadmill?

From Washington Times

When processed properly, scientists like Lackmann can examine the otolith with a compound microscope and count the layers, like the rings on a tree, and learn the age of the fish.

From Science Daily

But the compound microscope, invented around 1600, opened up a hidden world of microbes, allowing scientists to start naming them after their shapes, said Richard Barnett, a historian of science in Britain.

From New York Times

But when the pair examined the fossil through compound microscopes, they found that the teeth didn’t curve much at all from their base.

From National Geographic

It was not until he recently took a closer look with a powerful compound microscope — magnifying the specimen up to 1,000 times — that he noticed the tiny ticks within.

From Nature