biodiversity

IPA/ˌbaɪəʊdaɪˈvɜːsəti/
KK[bˌaɪodaɪvˈɚsəti]IPA/ˌbaɪəʊdaɪˈvɜːrsəti/

biodiversity — noun

1. the wide range of living things — from insects and birds to trees and fish — fou

1.nounB2
Definition

the wide range of living things — from insects and birds to trees and fish — found in one place or across the planet, and the work of keeping that range healthy.

Example

Borneo's rainforests are famous for their rich biodiversity.

rich biodiversity collocation

Farmers near Lake Toba are planting hedges to protect local biodiversity.

protect biodiversity collocation

Common collocations
  • rich biodiversity
  • high biodiversity
  • loss of biodiversity
  • protect biodiversity
  • biodiversity hotspot
Synonyms
Antonyms
  • monoculture

    the planting of a single species over a large area, the opposite of varied life

Grammar Patterns

biodiversity of [region]

loss of biodiversity

Usage Note

Uncountable: do not say 'a biodiversity' or 'biodiversities'. Subject is usually a habitat (forest, reef, wetland) or a region. Common in environmental, scientific, and policy writing.

Common Mistakes

The island has many biodiversities.
The island has high biodiversity.
biodiversity is uncountable; use 'high', 'rich', or 'great' instead of a plural.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

These four words sit close together in environmental writing but each highlights something different. 'Biodiversity' is the everyday cover term and includes the variety of genes, species, and habitats together; it is the word you will see in news articles, school textbooks, and tourism brochures. 'Biological diversity' means the same thing but sounds more formal — scientists and treaties such as the UN Convention on Biological Diversity prefer it. 'Species richness' is much narrower: it counts only how many different species live in one place, ignoring genes and ecosystems. 'Ecosystem' shifts the focus from variety to the whole working system — the plants, animals, water, and soil interacting together. So you might say a wetland has high biodiversity (lots of life) within one ecosystem (the wetland itself).

biodiversity ↗biological diversity ↗species richnessecosystem ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • biodiversity loss
  • biodiversity hotspot
  • biodiversity conservation
  • marine biodiversity
  • agricultural biodiversity

Adverbs

Phrases

  • loss of biodiversity
  • rich in biodiversity
  • protect biodiversity
  • threat to biodiversity

Prepositions

Etymology

GreekLatinEnglish

Biodiversity is a young word, formed in the mid-1980s by joining 'bio-' (from Greek 'bios' meaning life) with 'diversity' (from Latin 'diversitas', meaning variety). American biologist Walter G. Rosen is usually credited with shortening 'biological diversity' to 'biodiversity' in 1985 while planning a U.S. national forum on the topic; the 1988 book based on that forum spread the word into general use. It remains uncountable and chiefly scientific.