How to Use germ in a Sentence

germ

noun
  • Dirt and germs breed bad odors.
    — Nafeesah Allen, Better Homes & Gardens, 21 Oct. 2025
  • The germ has been passed to him.
    — Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 27 June 2026
  • The germ has been passed to him.
    — Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 22 June 2026
  • That germ of an idea was stored away in the back of his mind.
    — Sandra Dallas, The Denver Post, 21 Apr. 2020
  • Did the germ of the idea begin with you?
    — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 2 Oct. 2025
  • What kind of germs are lurking on shoes?
    — Angela Haupt, Time, 25 Aug. 2025
  • There's the bran, the germ, and the endosperm.
    — Bon Appétit, Bon Appetit Magazine, 9 Dec. 2025
  • This little screen on the seat in front of me filled with germs?
    — Vulture, 12 Nov. 2023
  • Here's what to know about these germs in your home and what to do about them.
    — Hannah Nwoko, Parents, 28 June 2026
  • Washing your hands is the best way to kill germs—most of the time.
    — Chris Morris, Fortune, 13 Aug. 2025
  • This unique and thoughtful gift will help keep his phone both germ-free and charged.
    — Mike Richard, Men's Health, 18 Nov. 2022
  • Inside the bran is the endosperm and the germ.
    — Sheah Rarback, Miami Herald, 3 Sep. 2025
  • Whole wheat pasta keeps the bran and germ intact.
    — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Sacbee.com, 18 May 2026
  • The germ killed all the women and left the men with the Noise.
    — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 19 Nov. 2020
  • Oats are a whole grain, meaning the bran and germ are still intact.
    — Darlene Zimmerman, Detroit Free Press, 10 Oct. 2020
  • No crowds, germs, or trips to the mall or post office required.
    — Gary Drenik, Forbes, 10 Oct. 2024
  • Those were the germs of The Comeback.
    — Glenn Garner, Deadline, 22 Mar. 2026
  • Exposure to any germs could've killed her.
    — Christian Orozco, NBC news, 16 Oct. 2025
  • It's derived from wheat that has been milled to remove the germ and bran.
    — Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 22 Dec. 2022
  • The backyard playsets give these kids a safe, germ-free place to play.
    — San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Apr. 2022
  • But even some of those who did not rinse the chicken got germs on the lettuce.
    — Candice Choi, The Denver Post, 26 Nov. 2019
  • But even some of those who did not rinse the chicken got germs on the lettuce.
    — Candice Choi, orlandosentinel.com, 25 Nov. 2019
  • To make whole wheat flour, varying amounts of the germ and bran are added back in to the flour.
    — Carmen Collins, Country Living, 19 Apr. 2022
  • Soap dishes need to stay clean and germ-free so that hands, mouths, and faces can do the same.
    — Nafeesah Allen, Better Homes & Gardens, 30 Dec. 2025
  • To produce white flour, the bran and germ get stripped from the starchy bit, which is then ground up.
    — Ryan Kellman, NPR, 10 Sep. 2024
  • The study did not compare the spread of germs in a plane to, say, a movie theater.
    — Susan Scutti, CNN, 19 Mar. 2018
  • Plaque is the sticky film of germs that can cause cavities and make your breath smell bad.
    — Linda Bartoshuk, The Conversation, 5 Jan. 2026
  • The article became the germ of his first and best known book.
    — Emily Langer, Washington Post, 2 Feb. 2024
  • But the germ of the book was planted in the first year of the pandemic.
    — Jia Tolentino, The New Yorker, 10 Sep. 2023
  • And one of the easiest places to catch germs is at airports or on a plane.
    — Nancy Trejos, USA TODAY, 21 Feb. 2018

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'germ.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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