entomology

[ en-tuh-mol-uh-jee ]

/ ˌɛn təˈmɒl ə dʒi /

noun

the branch of zoology dealing with insects.

Nearby words

Origin of entomology

First recorded in 1760–70; entomo- + -logy

Related forms

en·to·mo·log·i·cal

[en-tuh-muh-loj-i-kuh l] /ˌɛn tə məˈlɒdʒ ɪ kəl/, en·to·mo·log·ic, adjectiveen·to·mo·log·i·cal·ly, adverben·to·mol·o·gist, nounnon·en·to·mo·log·ic, adjective

non·en·to·mo·log·i·cal, adjectiveun·en·to·mo·log·i·cal, adjective

Can be confusedentomology etymology

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

Examples from the Web for entomologist

We talked to entomologist Louis Sorkin about the best ways to prepare the little protein nuggets.
Can You Eat Cicadas? Yes, and Here’s How|Brian Ries|May 16, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The district is good ground for the field botanist and entomologist.
Hertfordshire|Herbert W Tompkins
With a slide that would have done credit to any baseball player, the entomologist catapulted on his chest past the snapping peril.
The Raid on the Termites|Paul Ernst
"A gen'man to see you, sah," announced Aunt Fanny at this inopportune moment, and the entomologist was obliged to leave the room.
Bee and Butterfly|Lucy Foster Madison

In the United States, somebody had sent an entomologist a present of some eggs of one of these moths.
The Romance of Plant Life|G. F. Scott Elliot
Strangely, Cleveland, the entomologist, gets the worst jolt out of them.
Tabby|Winston Marks

British Dictionary definitions for entomologist

entomology

/ (ˌɛntəˈmɒlədʒɪ) /

noun

the branch of science concerned with the study of insects

Derived Formsentomological (ˌɛntəməˈlɒdʒɪkəl) or entomologic, adjectiveentomologically, adverbentomologist, noun

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 entomologist

entomologist

1771; see entomology + -ist.

entomology

1766, from French entomologie (1764), coined from Greek entomon "insect" + -logia "study of" (see -logy). Entomon is neuter of entomos "having a notch or cut (at the waist)," from en "in" (see en- (2)) + temnein "to cut" (see tome).

So called by Aristotle in reference to the segmented division of insect bodies. Compare insect. Related: Entomological. Hybrid insectology (1766, from French insectologie, 1744) is not much used.

I have given the name insectology to that part of natural history which has insects for its object; that of entomology ... would undoubtedly have been more suitable ... but its barbarous sound terryfy'd me. [Charles Bonnet's English translation of his "Contemplation de la nature," 1766]

Medicine definitions for entomologist

entomology

[ ĕn′tə-mŏl′ə-jē ]

n.

The study of insects.

Related formsen′to•mo•log′ic (-mə-lŏj′ĭk) null adj.en′to•mol′o•gist n.

Science definitions for entomologist

entomology

[ ĕn′tə-mŏl′ə-jē ]

The scientific study of insects.

Word History

Scientists who study insects (there are close to a million that can be studied!) are called entomologists. Why are they not called insectologists? Well, in a way they are. The word insect comes from the Latin word insectum, meaning cut up or divided into segments. (The plural of insectum, namely insecta, is used by scientists as the name of the taxonomic class that insects belong to.) This Latin word was created in order to translate the Greek word for insect, which is entomon. This Greek word also literally means cut up or divided into segments, and it is the source of the word entomology. The Greeks had coined this term for insects because of the clear division of insect bodies into three segments, now called the head, thorax, and abdomen.