E. coli

American  

[ee koh-lahy] / ˈi ˈkoʊ laɪ /

noun

Bacteriology.

1. Escherichia coli: a species of rod-shaped, facultatively anaerobic bacteria in the large intestine of humans and other animals, sometimes pathogenic.

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E. coli British  

/ ˌiːˈkəʊlaɪ /

noun

1. short for Escherichia coli; see Escherichia

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E. coli Scientific  

/ ēkō′lī /

1. A bacillus (Escherichia coli) normally found in the human gastrointestinal tract and occurring in numerous strains, some of which are responsible for diarrheal diseases. Other strains have important experimental uses in molecular biology.

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Etymology

Origin of E. coli

See Escherichia coli ( def. )

Example Sentences

McAfee said he tests every batch of milk that comes out of his milking parlors, and none have been positive for E. coli, salmonella, campylobacter, listeria or any other contaminant that causes human illness.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 2, 2026

The FDA has yet to confirm that E. coli has been found in any Raw Farm products, he said.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 2, 2026

They found that pieces of amino acids from E. coli bacteria, if trapped in Martian permafrost or ice caps, could survive more than 50 million years even under constant cosmic radiation.

From Science Daily • Feb. 25, 2026

The company’s U.S. performance last quarter also benefited from comparisons with the previous year’s period, when the chain was grappling with an E. coli outbreak that depressed sales.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 11, 2026

Jacob worked at the other end of the attic, experimenting with a virus that infected E. coli.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee