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zoo
[ zoo ]
/ zu /
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noun, plural zoos.
Also called zoological garden. a parklike area in which live animals are kept in cages or large enclosures for public exhibition.
Informal. a place, activity, or group marked by chaos or unrestrained behavior.
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Origin of zoo
First recorded in 1840â50; first two syllables of zoological garden taken as one syllable
Words nearby zoo
zonked, zonk out, Zonta Club, Zontian, zonule, zoo, zoobiotic, zoochem., zoochemistry, zoochlorella, zoochore
Other definitions for zoo (2 of 2)
zoo-
a combining form meaning âliving being,â âanimal,â used in the formation of compound words: zoometry; zooplankton.
Also especially before a vowel, zo-.
Origin of zoo-
Combining form representing Greek zĂŽion animal
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use zoo in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for zoo (1 of 2)
zoo
/ (zuË) /
noun plural zoos
a place where live animals are kept, studied, bred, and exhibited to the publicFormal term: zoological garden
Word Origin for zoo
C19: shortened from zoological gardens (originally applied to those in London)
British Dictionary definitions for zoo (2 of 2)
zoo-
before a vowel zo-
combining form
indicating animalszooplankton
Word Origin for zoo-
from Greek zĆion animal
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
Other Idioms and Phrases with zoo
zoo
see it's a zoo.
The American HeritageÂź Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.