entomology

[ en-tuh-mol-uh-jee ]

/ ˌɛn təˈmɒl ə dʒi /

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noun

the branch of zoology dealing with insects.

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Origin of entomology

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

OTHER WORDS FROM entomology

en·to·mo·log·i·cal

[en-tuh-muh-loj-i-kuhl], /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

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH entomology

entomology , etymology

Words nearby entomology

entomo-, entomofauna, entomol., entomologist, entomologize, entomology, entomophagous, entomophilous, entomostracan, entophyte, entopic

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use entomology in a sentence

The periodical lifestyle evolved along with them, the researchers wrote online October 8 in the Annual Review of Entomology.
Cicada science heats up when Brood X emerges. 2021 was no exception|Susan Milius|December 14, 2021|Science News
They also gravitate toward people with warmer body temperatures, type O blood, and anyone wearing darker clothing, according to a study published in the Journal of Medical Entomology.
How to Keep Things from Biting You This Summer|aweinberg|August 14, 2021|Outside Online
Matt Bertone, Extension Associate in Entomology, North Carolina State UniversityThis article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license.
Should I Kill Spiders In My Home? An Entomologist Explains Why Not To|LGBTQ-Editor|October 22, 2020|No Straight News
One must know not only how to catch it but where to find it, and some knowledge of entomology is essential at the very beginning.
Birds and All Nature, Vol. VI, No. 3, October 1899|Various

The following curious account of wild bees is principally abridged from Kirby and Spences very interesting work on entomology.
The Book of Curiosities|I. Platts
In the introduction to a modern Entomology there is a description of the process by which the spider weaves its web.
The Book of Curiosities|I. Platts
My readers may differ in appraising the comparative value of the trifling discoveries which entomology owes to my labours.
More Hunting Wasps|J. Henri Fabre
Thou art in a land rich in botany and mineralogy, rich in zoology and entomology.
Wanderings in South America|Charles Waterton

British Dictionary definitions for entomology

entomology

/ (ˌɛntəˈmɒlədʒɪ) /

noun

the branch of science concerned with the study of insects

Derived forms of entomology

entomological (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

Scientific definitions for entomology

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.