listeria

noun

lis·​te·​ria li-ˈstir-ē-ə 

plural listeria

: any of a genus (Listeria) of small, gram-positive, rod-shaped bacteria that do not form spores and have a tendency to grow in chains and that include one (Listeria monocytogenes) that causes listeriosis

A common germ found in many foods from raw vegetables to hot dogs, listeria can cause a sometimes fatal disease called listeriosis when present in large quantities.

—Amy Barrett

also : a disease or sickness caused by infection with this bacterium : listeriosis

Listeria symptoms include high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea.

—Sierra Brown

Examples of listeria in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The same dangers apply to cotija and queso fresco cheese, as they are made from raw milk, and one producer, Rizo-Lopez Foods, was shut down in October after its cheeses were linked to a years-long listeria outbreak that killed two people and made dozens of others sick. —Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 19 May 2025

Fresh & Ready Foods is voluntarily recalling numerous products, after at least 10 people in the U.S. have been sickened in a listeria outbreak linked to its ready-to-eat food products, federal officials said. —CBS News, 13 May 2025

Usually, listeria causes stomachaches, headaches, diarrhea, vomiting and muscle stiffness. —David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 13 Apr. 2025

These illnesses can result from exposure to bacteria such as salmonella or listeria. —Dan Perry, Newsweek, 2 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from Listeria, from Joseph Lister

First Known Use

1952, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for listeria

• arteria
• bacteria
• criteria
• diphtheria
• egeria
• neisseria
• wisteria
• cafeteria
• cyanobacteria
• mycobacteria

Medical Definition

listeria

noun

lis·​te·​ria lis-ˈtir-ē-ə 

1

capitalized : a genus of small gram-positive flagellated rod-shaped bacteria that do not form spores, are aerobic or facultatively anaerobic, and have a tendency to grow in chains and that include one (L. monocytogenes) causing listeriosis

2

: any bacterium of the genus Listeria

called also listerella

listerial

lis-ˈtir-ē-əl 

adjective

listeric

-ik 

adjective