STAPHYLOCOCCUS

[staph.y.lo.coc.cus] n, pl -coc.ci [NL, fr. Gk staphyle bunch of grapes + NL -coccus] (1887): any of various nonmotile gram-positive spherical bacteria (esp. genus Staphylococcus) that occur singly, in pairs or tetrads, or in irregular clusters and include pathogens which infect skin and mucous membranes