botanical
Americanadjective
noun
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of botanical
1650–60; botanic (< Medieval Latin botanicus < Greek botanikós of plants, equivalent to botán ( ē ) herb + -ikos -ic ) + -al 1
Explanation
Use the adjective botanical to describe something that has to do with plants. You might call your illustrated book of New England ferns and mosses a botanical guide. Botanical research involves the study of plants, and a botanical scientist — or botanist — has focused her career on learning about plants. If there are botanical substances in your favorite soda, it means that in addition to sugar and chemicals, there are plant ingredients too. Botanical comes from botanic, which has its root in the Greek word botanikos, "of herbs."
Vocabulary lists containing botanical
My Side of the Mountain
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The Most Beautiful Roof in the World
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"Allied with Green," Vocabulary from the short story
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A 2025 study in Botanical Sciences examined chinicuil extraction from Agave applanata populations and found that populations without extraction had higher growth rates.
From Science Daily • Apr. 26, 2026
And should those monsoon clouds descend while you’re roaming the lush banana groves of Queen Sirikit Botanical Garden, I promise you won’t mind.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 28, 2026
Peter Stroh, scientific officer at the Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland, said the revision of the species threat status was "excellent news".
From BBC • Nov. 9, 2025
Grant recipients include the New York Botanical Garden for plant identification and the University of Leeds for food waste conversion.
From Barron's • Oct. 23, 2025
I remember what it felt like when I was seven and got lost at the Desert Botanical Garden.
From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
