inoculum
/ɪˈnɑkjələm/
noun
- A substance (such as a vaccine or a small amount of a germ) that is introduced into the body to produce immunity or into a growth medium to start a culture.
- Farmers sometimes add an inoculum of beneficial fungi to the soil.
- The lab prepared an inoculum of weakened bacteria for the experiment.
- A small inoculum of the virus was used to test the vaccine's effectiveness.
Synonyms