biometrics

American  

[bahy-uh-me-triks] / ˌbaɪ əˈmɛ trɪks /

noun

(used with a singular verb)

1. Biology, Statistics. biostatistics.

2. biometry.

3. the process by which a person's unique physical and other traits are detected and recorded by an electronic device or system as a means of confirming identity.

   Scanning of the human iris is a reliable form of biometrics.

---

biometrics Cultural  

1. The measuring and analysis of such physical attributes as facial features and voice or retinal scans. This technology can be used to define an individual's unique identity, often for security purposes.

---

Discover More

Software is available that can match faces of individuals videotaped on the street to the picture of a suspected criminal or terrorist in a database. The use of biometrics is likely to increase in the future as security concerns become more of a priority for both governments and corporations following the September 11 attacks (2001).

Other Word Forms

• biometric
  adjective
• biometrical
  adjective
• biometrically
  adverb

---

Etymology

Origin of biometrics

First recorded in 1900–05; biometr(y) + -ics

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

biometrics

"You can build a vault with mathematical firewalls, but if the individual holding the keys can be duped, the vault is opened," said Dr Clive Summerfield, head of FARx, a biometrics in AI security company.

From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026

The bump reflected the acquisition of Thorne Healthtech, a biometrics company, which closed Oct.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026

Rather than selling mass-market step counters, they market premium products that synthesize biometrics like heart rate variability and skin temperature into actionable outputs: early illness warnings, recovery scores and training recommendations.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026

According to Liberty, In 2023 the government's biometrics and surveillance camera commissioner Fraser Sampson said that camera on an officer walking down the street could check hundreds if not thousands of people while on duty.

From BBC ● May 25, 2026

There would be statisticians, trained in biometrics, to criticize and compare data obtained.

From The Glands Regulating Personality by Louis Berman M.D.

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---