omnivorous
Americanadjective
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eating both animal and plant foods.
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eating all kinds of foods indiscriminately.
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taking in everything, as with the mind.
an omnivorous reader.
adjective
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eating food of both animal and vegetable origin, or any type of food indiscriminately
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taking in or assimilating everything, esp with the mind
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of omnivorous
First recorded in 1650–60; from Latin omnivorus “all-devouring”; equivalent to omni- + -vorous
Explanation
An omnivorous animal eats meat and plants — everything on the menu. The word omnivorous wears its meaning on its sleeve: omni means "all," and vorare is "to devour." It all comes together in the Latin word omnivorus — "all-devouring." Rarr! Polar bears are omnivorous, while pandas are herbivorous (eat only plants). People love to say they're carnivorous (eat only meat) when they're probably really omnivorous (unless they really do kick the French fries off the plate every time). Since omnivorous means "devouring everything," you can use it to describe someone with a very curious mind, who wants to "devour" everything with their brain, not their teeth.
Vocabulary lists containing omnivorous
100 SAT words Beginning with "O"
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2015 Spelling Bee - Words from Round 2
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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.
Two diets were omnivorous, with half of the protein coming from animal sources and the remainder from plants.
From Science Daily • May 12, 2026
These stones suggest the animal had an omnivorous diet that included plants, insects, and small animals.
From Science Daily • Apr. 1, 2026
Reviewing the staging of the show at the Guggenheim, our critic said “the Chicago-born artist has an omnivorous intellect, one that he proudly displays in this presentation.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 8, 2026
If the idea of attacking a giant leaf with a fork makes you feel like an omnivorous dinosaur waiting for extinction, consider changing the format.
From Salon • Feb. 18, 2026
While they are largely omnivorous, anything as rich and full of energy as straight heart meat could not be ignored, and after a week the two birds left.
From This Side of Wild by Gary Paulsen
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.
