microscope
An optical instrument used for observing small objects.
Noun
- An optical instrument used for observing small objects.
- That he might ascertain whether any of the cloths of ancient Egypt were made of hemp, M. Dutrochet has examined with the microscope the weavable filaments of this last vegetable. - 1837, The Edinburgh New Philosophical...
- Elsewhere, professionals could enthuse over new precision instruments capable, for instance, of measuring weights down to a tenth of a milligram, or over a host of self-registering thermometers and barometers,...
- Any instrument for imaging very small objects (such as an electron microscope).
Origin
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *mey-der.? Ancient Greek μῑκρός (mīkrós) Proto-Indo-European *speḱ- Proto-Indo-European *-yeti Proto-Indo-European *spéḱyeti Proto-Hellenic *sképťomai Ancient Greek σκέπτομαι (sképtomai) Proto-Indo-European *-ós Proto-Hellenic *-ós ▲ Ancient Greek -ος (-os)influ. Ancient Greek -ός (-ós) Ancient Greek σκοπός (skopós) Proto-Indo-European *-eti Proto-Indo-European *-eyéti Proto-Indo-European *-esyéti Proto-Indo-European *-éh₁ti Proto-Indo-European *-yeti Proto-Indo-European *-éh₁yeti Proto-Indo-European *-yeti Proto-Indo-European *-éyeti Ancient Greek -έω (-éō) Ancient Greek σκοπέω (skopéō) Proto-Indo-European *-yós Proto-Italic *-ios Old Latin -ios Latin -ius Latin -ium Latin mīcroscopiumlbor. Italian microscopiobor. English microscope From New Latin microscopium and Italian microscopio, from Ancient Greek μικρός (mikrós, “small”) + σκοπέω (skopéō, “to...
Forms
Related
Derived
atomic force microscope bimicroscope biomicroscope colpomicroscope compound microscope cryomicroscope cryo-transmission electron microscope dissecting microscope electromicroscope electron microscope endomicroscope epifluorescence microscope field emission microscope fluorescence microscope fluoromicroscope interference microscope light microscope microscopal microscope slide microscopial microscopic microscopical microscopist microscopy
Verb
- To examine with a microscope, to put under a microscope (literally or figuratively).
- It has a strong germicidal action, as can be verified by staining and microscoping the pus, the characteristic micro-organisms disappearing rapidly under its use. - 1897, The Clinical Journal, page 200:
- Wright (1959), using the standard and less laborious technique of microscoping the centrifuged deposit of a sample of urine, found that 21.6% of males attending life insurance examinations had more than 10 red blood...
Synonyms: microscopize