biodiversity

noun

bio·di·ver·si·ty ˌbī-(ˌ)ō-də-ˈvər-sə-tē

-dī-

: biological diversity in an environment as indicated by numbers of different species of plants and animals

biodiverse

ˌbī-(ˌ)ō-dī-ˈvərs

-də-

adjective

Did you know?

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

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The Neogene, from 2.6 to 23.5 million years ago, was a time of immense change in biodiversity because of changing climates. —

Bruce J. MacFadden, The Conversation, 3 Feb. 2025 Spanning over 26,000 acres, the park is rich in biodiversity, from towering hardwoods to unique wildlife. —

Allison Palmer, Charlotte Observer, 29 Jan. 2025 The ocean is the birthplace of life on Earth, covering over 70% of our planet and sustaining an extraordinary range of biodiversity—from microscopic plankton to the largest whales. —

Photovogue, Vogue, 29 Jan. 2025 These uninhabited islands teem with such biodiversity that they are included in the region's UNESCO World Heritage designation. —

Carley Rojas Avila, Travel + Leisure, 19 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for biodiversity