Linnaean
Americanadjective
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of or relating to Linnaeus, who established the binomial system of scientific nomenclature.
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noting or pertaining to a system of botanical classification introduced by him, based mainly on the number or characteristics of the stamens and pistils.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of Linnaean
First recorded in 1745–55; Linnae(us) + -an
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"For botanical or natural extracts, we refer to the Linnaean system, which is the international system for scientifically naming plants and animals, and lots of those names will be Latin-based," she said.
From BBC • Jul. 12, 2025
She was headmistress at Patapsco from 1841 to 1859, a time when rich girls were taught mostly drawing, elocution and how to be a wife, instead of the Linnaean plant classification system.
From Washington Post • Dec. 21, 2021
When taxa are rearranged this way, some old Linnaean classifications no longer work.
From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2018
Today, of course, we recognize the giraffe as a distinct species, though the misapprehensions of the past endure in the animal’s Linnaean name: Giraffa camelopardalis.
From The New Yorker • May 17, 2016
As to the reaction of the members of the Linnaean Society—only a few who read the papers had any idea what impact the theory would make.
From "Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith" by Deborah Heiligman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
