paleontologist

[pey-lee-uhn-tol-uh-jist, pal-ee-]

noun

1. a scientist who specializes in the study of life forms that existed in previous geologic periods, as represented by their fossils.

   The education program manager for the museum has worked as a paleontologist, digging up dinosaur bones in Wyoming.

Word History and Origins

Origin of paleontologist¹

paleontolog(y) ( def. ) + -ist ( def. )

Example Sentences

Bailey’s character, the bespectacled paleontologist named Henry, evokes Harrison Ford’s “Indiana Jones”-era heartthrob, with director Gareth Edwards making sure to capture his wire-rimmed glasses beaming in the natural light.

From Salon

Sauropods, the inspiration for Boom Boom, are one of a few species of dinosaurs that paleontologists say lived in New Zealand.

From BBC

The dire wolves known to paleontologists, however, are different from the creatures that can now be viewed in Colossal videos gamboling in an open field.

From Los Angeles Times

The skeleton was unearthed 2 years ago by a commercial paleontologist in Colorado’s fossil-rich Morrison Formation, then put up for auction earlier this year.

From Science Magazine

“There has never been a study of this kind, ever,” says lead author Martin Qvarnström, a paleontologist at Uppsala University.

From Science Magazine