bio

¹

[bahy-oh]

noun

plural

bios 

1. biography.

2. biology.

adjective

1. biographical.

2. biological.

   a bio control service using praying mantises to reduce the population of garden pests.

bio-

²

1. a combining form meaning “life” occurring in loanwords from Greek (biography ); on this model, used in the formation of compound words (bioluminescence ).

bio-

¹

combining form

1. indicating or involving life or living organisms

   biogenesis

   biolysis

2. indicating a human life or career

   biography

   biopic

bio

²

/ ˈbaɪəʊ /

noun

1. short for biography

Word History and Origins

Origin of bio¹

1945–50; by shortening; as adj., independent use of bio-, taken as a free form

Origin of bio²

Combining form of Greek bíos life; akin to Latin vīvus living, Sanskrit jīvas. See quick

Word History and Origins

Origin of bio¹

from Greek bios life

Example Sentences

A campaign bio highlighted his work to facilitate Christian adoptions and other faith-related activities.

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Biotech company Gossamer Bio completed an IPO that way, but most others waited for the government to reopen.

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The acquisition follows an agreement in September to purchase Tourmaline Bio for $1.4 billion, in a deal that the company said would add Tourmaline’s targeted therapy drug pacibekitug to Novartis’s cardiovascular-drug pipeline.

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"The surviving mammals still retain the same north and south bio provinces," Flynn said.

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Buffington led the research alongside Ilya Finkelstein, a professor of molecular biosciences at UT, with support from Retronix Bio and the Welch Foundation.

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Related Words

• account 
• anecdote 
• autobiography 
• biography 
• chronicle 
• diary 
• essay 
• journal 
• life 
• life story www.thesaurus.com
• memory 
• narrative 
• note 
• recollection 
• reminiscence 
• thesis 
• treatise 

When To Use

What does bio- mean?

The combining form bio- is used like a prefix meaning “life.” It is often used in scientific terms, especially in biology.The form bio- comes from Greek bíos, meaning “life.” The Latin cognate of bíos is vīta, “life,” which is the source of words such as vital. Find out more at our entry for vital.What are variants of bio-?When combined with words or word elements that begin with a vowel, bio- becomes bi-, as in biome. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use article for bi-.