aquarium

IPA/əˈkweəriəm/
KK[əkwˈɛriəm]IPA/əˈkweriəm/

aquarium — noun

  • aquariumsingular
  • aquariumsplural

1. a clear glass or plastic tank that you fill with water at home or in a classroom

1.nounA2
Definition

a clear glass or plastic tank that you fill with water at home or in a classroom so that fish, turtles, or other small water animals can live inside where you can watch them.

Example

Sophie cleaned the aquarium and added two new goldfish for her birthday.

concrete domestic scene

The science teacher kept a small aquarium with three turtles next to the window.

in a classroom setting

Common collocations
  • clean the aquarium
  • set up an aquarium
  • tropical aquarium
  • saltwater aquarium
  • a fish in the aquarium
Synonyms
  • fish tank

    everyday term, more common in casual speech

  • tank

    shorter informal label, often used by hobbyists

  • fishbowl

    specifically a small round glass bowl, usually for one or two fish

Grammar Patterns

in the/an aquarium

Usage Note

Almost always countable. Often described by size or contents (a small/large/saltwater aquarium; an aquarium full of tropical fish). Distinguish from sense 2: this one fits in a room; sense 2 is a whole building.

Common Mistakes

I have many aquarium at home.
I have many aquariums at home.
countable noun; use the plural form 'aquariums'.
The fish swim on the aquarium.
The fish swim in the aquarium.
use 'in', because the fish are inside the water.

2. a public place that visitors can pay to enter, where many large tanks and pools

2.nounA2
Definition

a public place that visitors can pay to enter, where many large tanks and pools display fish, sharks, jellyfish, and other sea animals so that people can learn about ocean life.

Example

On Saturday the whole class took a bus to the aquarium in Kaohsiung.

go to the aquarium for a school trip

Ilya watched two penguins waddle along the rocks at the aquarium.

specific animal scene at the aquarium

Common collocations
  • visit the aquarium
  • go to the aquarium
  • open an aquarium
  • a public aquarium
  • tickets to the aquarium
Synonyms
  • marine park

    larger outdoor site, often with shows and rides as well as tanks

  • oceanarium

    formal word for a very large public aquarium showing ocean species

  • sea life centre

    British-style brand-like name for the same kind of attraction

Grammar Patterns

go to the aquarium

visit an/the aquarium

Usage Note

Subject is usually a person or group visiting; common with verbs of movement and viewing (go to, visit, walk through). Distinguish from sense 1: if you can buy a ticket and walk inside, it is sense 2.

Common Mistakes

We went to aquarium yesterday.
We went to the aquarium yesterday.
when you mean a specific public building, use the article 'the'.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four words name a container for keeping live fish, but they differ in size, shape, and how formal they sound. 'Aquarium' is the most general and slightly more formal choice — it can be small (on a desk) or huge (filling a wall) and is often used in writing or by hobbyists. 'Fish tank' is the everyday spoken equivalent and usually pictures a rectangular glass box at home. 'Tank' alone is short, informal, and common in hobby talk: 'I'm setting up a new tank.' 'Fishbowl' is much narrower in meaning — a small round glass bowl, usually for one goldfish, with no filter. So you might say, 'I keep a goldfish in a fishbowl, my friend has a 200-litre aquarium full of tropical fish.'

aquarium ↗fish tankfishbowl ↗tank ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • aquarium tank
  • aquarium fish
  • aquarium plants
  • aquarium tickets
  • aquarium visitor

Phrases

  • set up an aquarium
  • visit an aquarium
  • tropical aquarium
  • public aquarium

Prepositions

  • in the aquarium
  • at the aquarium
  • to the aquarium

Etymology

LatinEnglish

Borrowed into English in the mid-1800s from Latin 'aquarium', meaning 'a watering place for cattle'. The Latin word itself comes from 'aqua' ('water') plus the ending '-arium', which marks a place where something is kept (like 'planetarium' for stars or 'terrarium' for land plants). The British zoologist Philip Henry Gosse helped popularise the modern meaning in 1854, using it for a glass tank that displays live fish and other water creatures.