biodiversity
noun
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Biodiversity may become the rallying call for the next decade, wrote David Wake in the journal Science in 1989. Indeed, biodiversity is a word you're likely to encounter in writing about ecology and the environment today. But when Wake used it, "biodiversity" was still a relatively new addition to the English language, having first appeared in writing in the mid-1980s. Of course, the roots of biodiversity are much older. It evolved from a commingling of the descendants of the Greek noun bios, which means "mode of life," and the Latin verb divertere, which means "to turn aside" or "to go different ways."
Examples of biodiversity in a Sentence
Antonio Maria Delgado, Miami Herald, 11 Mar. 2025
Lake Tanganyika is perhaps best known by scientists for its incredible biodiversity.
—Stefanie Waldek, Space.com, 6 Mar. 2025
Most divisions of the agency, which employs scientists and specialists in weather, oceans, biodiversity, climate and other research and planetary monitoring fields, were affected.
—Eric Zerkel, Mary Gilbert and Angela Fritz, CNN, 1 Mar. 2025
Visitors can also get interactive lessons in prehistoric life, evolution, the climate and biodiversity crises, conservation and scientific methods.
—Phaedra Trethan, USA TODAY, 1 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for biodiversity
Cite this Entry
“Biodiversity.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/biodiversity. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.
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biodiversity
noun
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