biome

[bahy-ohm]

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noun Ecology.

a complex biotic community characterized by distinctive plant and animal species and maintained under the climatic conditions of the region, especially such a community that has developed to climax.

Origin of biome

1915–20; bi-² + -ome -oma

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for biome

habitat, ecosystem, environment, biosphere, ecosphere, grassland, tundra, desert

British Dictionary definitions for biome

biome

noun

a major ecological community, extending over a large area and usually characterized by a dominant vegetationSee formation (def. 6)

Word Origin for biome

C20: from bio- + -ome

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for biome

1908, from Greek bios (see bio-) + -ome.

biome in Medicine

biome

[bī′ōm′]

n.

The total complex of biotic communities occupying and characterizing a particular area or zone, such as a desert or deciduous forest.

biome in Science

biome

[bī′ōm′]

A large community of plants and animals that occupies a distinct region. Terrestrial biomes, typically defined by their climate and dominant vegetation, include grassland, tundra, desert, tropical rainforest, and deciduous and coniferous forests. There are two basic aquatic biomes, freshwater and marine, which are sometimes further broken down into categories such as lakes and rivers or pelagic, benthic, and intertidal zones.