Paleontology

//ˌpeɪli.ənˈtɒləd͡ʒi// noun

noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    The study of the forms of life existing in prehistoric or geologic times, especially as represented by fossils. US, uncountable
  2. 2
    the earth science that studies fossil organisms and related remains wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
aerobiologyagrobiologyanatomyastrobiologybacteriologybiochemics

Example

More examples

"The pterosaur has been described for the first time in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology."

Etymology

Attested since 1836 (as palæontology). From French paléontologie (attested since 1822). By surface analysis, paleo- (“ancient”) + onto- (“being”) + -logy (“study”).

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.