salmonella

noun

sal·​mo·​nel·​la ˌsal-mə-ˈne-lə 

plural salmonellae ˌsal-mə-ˈne-(ˌ)lē 

-ˌlī

or salmonellas or salmonella

: any of a genus (Salmonella) of usually motile enterobacteria that are pathogenic for humans and other warm-blooded animals and cause food poisoning, gastrointestinal inflammation, typhoid fever, or septicemia

Examples of salmonella in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Two separate recalls have been classified as Class I, the most serious warning level, by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) because of potential salmonella contamination in raw tomato products distributed across multiple U.S. states. —Jasmine Laws, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 May 2025

Symptoms of salmonella include fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and stomach cramps, the CDC said. —Peter Burke, FOXNews.com, 9 May 2025

It is discovered that a group of followers of Rajneesh deliberately contaminated salad bars with salmonella bacteria, in an attempt to impact local elections by incapacitating voters in The Dalles, Oregon. —Amita Gupta, Baltimore Sun, 7 May 2025

Healthy people infected with salmonella usually experience several symptoms, such as fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain, the federal agency said. —James Powel, USA Today, 6 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from Daniel E. Salmon †1914 American veterinarian

First Known Use

1913, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for salmonella

• arabella
• bartonella
• bordetella
• cinderella
• citronella
• columella
• isabella
• klebsiella
• legionella
• mozzarella
• pasteurella
• trichinella

Kids Definition

salmonella

noun

sal·​mo·​nel·​la ˌsal-mə-ˈnel-ə 

plural salmonellae -ˈnel-ē 

-ˌī

or salmonellas or salmonella

: any of a genus of rod-shaped bacteria that cause various illnesses (as food poisoning) in human beings and other warm-blooded animals

Medical Definition

salmonella

noun

sal·​mo·​nel·​la ˌsal-mə-ˈnel-ə 

1

capitalized : a genus of aerobic gram-negative rod-shaped nonspore-forming usually motile bacteria of the family Enterobacteriaceae that grow well on artificial media and form acid and gas on many carbohydrates but not on lactose, sucrose, or salicin, that are pathogenic for humans and other warm-blooded animals, and that cause food poisoning, acute gastrointestinal inflammation, typhoid fever, and septicemia

2

plural salmonellae -ˈnel-ē  or salmonellas or salmonella : any bacterium of the genus Salmonella