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Synonyms

zoologist

American  
[zoh-ol-uh-jist] / zoʊˈɒl ə dʒɪst /

noun

  1. a specialist in zoology.


Etymology

Origin of zoologist

First recorded in 1655–65; zoolog(y) + -ist

Explanation

A zoologist is a scientist who studies animals. Zoologists are experts on everything about animals, from their cells to the history of their evolution. If you love and are fascinated by animals, you might decide to become a zoologist. Your major in college will probably be zoology, which is a branch of biology focusing on all animals — even those that are extinct. A zoologist may end up doing research, or work as a zookeeper in a zoo. Zoologist shares a root with zoology, the Latin zoologia, which combines the Greek words zoion, "animal," and logia, "study."

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Vocabulary lists containing zoologist

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.

Among them was zoologist Peter Daszak, the president of EcoHealth Alliance, a nonprofit that managed government grants concerned with potential global pandemic threats.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 30, 2026

Dr Michel Dugon, a zoologist at the University of Galway, said the figures are "interesting" but "not surprising".

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2026

What all of this does not mean, according to zoologist Arik Kershenbaum of the University of Cambridge, is that dogs grasp the meaning of language.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 3, 2026

In the immortal words of English zoologist Lancelot Alexander Borradaile, who coined the term, carcinization is “one of the many attempts of Nature to evolve a crab.”

From Salon • Oct. 14, 2024

Davenport, the Harvard-trained zoologist famous for establishing the Eugenics Record Office, created a standardized evaluation form to judge the fittest babies.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee