ornithology

[ awr-nuh-thol-uh-jee ]

/ ˌɔr nəˈθɒl ə dʒi /

noun

the branch of zoology that deals with birds.

Nearby words

Origin of ornithology

From the New Latin word ornithologia, dating back to 1645–55. See ornitho-, -logy

Related formsor·ni·tho·log·i·cal

[awr-nuh-thuh-loj-i-kuh l] /ˌɔr nə θəˈlɒdʒ ɪ kəl/, or·ni·tho·log·ic, adjectiveor·ni·tho·log·i·cal·ly, adverbor·ni·thol·o·gist, nounun·or·ni·tho·log·i·cal, adjective

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

Examples from the Web for ornithological

David Sibley became my ornithological guru, and I did follow him into the field.
Book Bag: Terry Tempest Williams’s Birding Bibles|Terry Tempest Williams|March 27, 2013|DAILY BEAST
His Journals are full of other observations, ethnographical, ornithological, and entomological.
Makers of British Botany; a collection of biographies by living botanists|Various
I had not many opportunities of figuring the birds from life, so very desirable in ornithological subjects.
Three Expeditions into the Interior of Eastern Australia, Vol 2 (of 2)|Thomas Mitchell
With the limited means at its command the work of ornithological exploration was carried forward.
The Bird Study Book|Thomas Gilbert Pearson

His ornithological knowledge went no further than to the birds of Bengal; and the toucan is found only in America.
The Cliff Climbers|Captain Mayne Reid
I do not know how I came to see them, for I was not in an ornithological frame of mind.
Riverby|John Burroughs

British Dictionary definitions for ornithological

ornithology

/ (ˌɔːnɪˈθɒlədʒɪ) /

noun

the study of birds, including their physiology, classification, ecology, and behaviour

Derived Formsornithological (ˌɔːnɪθəˈlɒdʒɪkəl), adjectiveornithologically, adverbornithologist, 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 ornithological (1 of 2)

ornithological

adj.

1802, from ornithology + -ical. Related: Ornithologically.

Word Origin and History for ornithological (1 of 2)

ornithology

1670s, from Modern Latin ornithologia (1590s); see ornitho- + -logy.

Science definitions for ornithological

ornithology

[ ôr′nə-thŏl′ə-jē ]

The scientific study of birds.