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Bacteria are classified by shape, which helps identify and understand them. Rod-shaped bacteria are called bacilli. Among the options, the only one that describes a rod form is bacilli, while cocci are spherical, spirilla are spiral, and diplococci are spherical bacteria occurring in pairs. While some very short rods are sometimes described as coccobacilli, that term isn’t listed here, so bacilli is the best fit for “short rod-shaped bacteria.”