meteorology

IPA/ˌmiːtiəˈrɒlədʒi/
KK[mˌitiɚˈɑlədʒi]IPA/ˌmiːtiəˈrɑːlədʒi/

meteorology — noun

1. The branch of science that examines the air surrounding Earth and other planets,

1.nounC1
Definition

The branch of science that examines the air surrounding Earth and other planets, focusing on how weather systems develop and change.

Example

Chen Wei studied meteorology at university and now works for the national weather service.

studied + at university (typical collocation for academic subjects)

Modern meteorology uses satellites and computers to track storms across the ocean.

uses + satellites and computers (instruments of meteorology)

Common collocations
  • study meteorology
  • meteorology department
  • advances in meteorology
  • meteorology research
  • professor of meteorology
Synonyms
  • climatology

    Climatology is a subfield that focuses specifically on long-term climate patterns rather than day-to-day weather

  • atmospheric science

    A broader term that includes meteorology plus the study of atmospheric chemistry, physics, and air quality

Usage Note

Meteorology is an uncountable noun and is not used in the plural. A person who works in this field is a meteorologist; the related adjective is meteorological.

Common Mistakes

The meteorology today says it will rain.
The weather forecast today says it will rain.
Meteorology is the name of the scientific field, not the daily weather prediction. Use 'weather forecast' for reports about upcoming weather.
I want to study meteorologies at university.
I want to study meteorology at university.
Meteorology is an uncountable noun and has no plural form.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Meteorology is the broad scientific study of the atmosphere and weather processes. Climatology is a related but narrower field that focuses on long-term weather patterns and climate change over decades or centuries. Weather forecasting is the practical application of meteorological knowledge to predict what the weather will be like in the short term — it is an activity, not a science. For example, a meteorologist uses satellite data (meteorology) to see whether a storm is forming, while a climatologist studies whether such storms have become more frequent over the past fifty years. A TV weather presenter, by contrast, delivers the weather forecast drawn from both fields.

meteorology ↗climatologyweather forecasting

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

  • in meteorology
  • to meteorology

Phrases

  • study of meteorology
  • advances in meteorology
  • degree in meteorology

Prepositions

  • of meteorology
  • in meteorology

Etymology

GreekLatinFrenchEnglish

Meteorology comes from the Greek word meteōrologia, a combination of meteōron (meaning 'something high up in the sky', like a cloud or a star) and -logia ('study of'). In ancient Greek, it originally meant the study of any celestial or atmospheric phenomenon. By the 1600s, English had borrowed it through French, and the meaning narrowed to the scientific study of weather and the atmosphere.

First known use

1563

1563, in the meaning defined at sense 1