biodiversity
noun
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
Jake Angelo, Fortune, 15 May 2026
Volunteers can join the hands-on community science adventure to explore the preserve and document its biodiversity.
—Abby Hamblin, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 May 2026
Wildflowers are planted between vineyard rows to improve biodiversity and reduce water dependence.
—Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 12 May 2026
Araújo’s team plans to continue monitoring microplastic contamination in tadpoles across the Amazon to better understand its impact on regional biodiversity.
—Ryan Brennan, Sacbee.com, 12 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for biodiversity
Cite this Entry
“Biodiversity.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/biodiversity. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
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biodiversity
noun
