compound microscope
Americannoun
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an optical instrument for forming magnified images of small objects, consisting of an objective lens with a very short focal length and an eyepiece with a longer focal length, both lenses mounted in the same tube.
noun
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an instrument for magnifying small objects, consisting of a lens of short focal length for forming an image that is further magnified by a second lens of longer focal length Compare simple microscope
Etymology
Origin of compound microscope
First recorded in 1865–70
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Galileo had his telescope, Louis Pasteur had a compound microscope and American scientists today have … the treadmill?
From Washington Times • Dec. 31, 2023
When processed properly, scientists like Lackmann can examine the otolith with a compound microscope and count the layers, like the rings on a tree, and learn the age of the fish.
From Science Daily • Oct. 30, 2023
Figure 26.16 A compound microscope composed of two lenses, an objective and an eyepiece.
From Textbooks • Aug. 12, 2015
To investigate the formation and growth of the embryo itself requires well-trained eyes and hands, and the expert use of a good compound microscope.
From The Elements of Botany For Beginners and For Schools by Gray, Asa
Explanations requiring the use of a compound microscope do not enter necessarily into these lessons.
From Outlines of Lessons in Botany, Part I; from Seed to Leaf by Newell, Jane H.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.