Standard Lemma guide

vancomycin

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˌvæŋ.kəˈmaɪ.sɪn/
  • rhymes with -aɪsɪn
  • CMU ARPABET: V AE2 N K OW0 M AY1 S IH0 N Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A glycopeptide antibiotic C66H75Cl2N9O24 produced by the actinomycete Amycolaptosis orientalis, used in the form of its hydrochloride C66H75Cl2N9O24·HCl against Gram-positive bacteria, especially staphylococci resistant to meticillin and enterococci.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

Topics: medicine, pharmacology, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

an antibiotic (trade name Vancocin) effective against some bacterial infections

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: Vancocin

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: antibiotic, antibiotic drug

History

Etymology

Etymology tree English vanquish Ancient Greek -ο- (-o-)der. Latin -o-bor. English -o- English -mycin English vancomycin From vanquish + -o- + -mycin (“antibiotic produced by a Streptomyces strain”).

Across languages

Translations

4 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 萬古黴素 /万古霉素 (wàngǔméisù) — Translations
  • French: vancomycine — Translations
  • Italian: vancomicina — Translations
  • Portuguese: vancomicina — Translations