biologist
Other forms: biologists
A biologist is a scientist who focuses on living organisms, including plants and animals. Wildlife biologists might specialize in studying African elephants.
Biologists study a wide variety of life forms, from single-celled organisms to primates, and conduct research in many different areas, from the spreading of pathogens to the details of evolution. A marine biologist studies sea creatures and a microbiologist might study algae or bacteria. The word biologist is rooted in the Greek bios, or "life."
Definitions of biologist
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(biology) a scientist who studies living organisms
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synonyms:
life scientist
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examples:
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George Wells Beadle
United States biologist who discovered how hereditary characteristics are transmitted by genes (1903-1989)
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Alexis Carrel
French surgeon and biologist who developed a way to suture and graft blood vessels (1873-1944)
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Rachel Louise Carson
United States biologist remembered for her opposition to the use of pesticides that were hazardous to wildlife (1907-1964)
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Max Delbruck
United States biologist (born in Germany) who studied how viruses infect living cells (1906-1981)
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Ernst Heinrich Haeckel
German biologist and philosopher; advocated Darwinism and formulated the theory of recapitulation; was an exponent of materialistic monism (1834-1919)
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Thomas Henry Huxley
English biologist and a leading exponent of Darwin's theory of evolution (1825-1895)
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Sir John Cowdery Kendrew
English biologist noted for studies of the molecular structure of blood components (born in 1917)
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Thomas Hunt Morgan
United States biologist who formulated the chromosome theory of heredity (1866-1945)
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Louis Pasteur
French chemist and biologist whose discovery that fermentation is caused by microorganisms resulted in the process of pasteurization (1822-1895)
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types:
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bacteriologist
a biologist who studies bacteria
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botanist, phytologist, plant scientist
a biologist specializing in the study of plants
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cytologist
a biologist who studies the structure and function of cells
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ecologist
a biologist who studies the relation between organisms and their environment
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geneticist
a biologist who specializes in genetics
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microbiologist
a specialist in microbiology
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molecular biologist
a biologist who studies the structure and activity of macromolecules essential to life
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natural scientist, naturalist
a biologist knowledgeable about natural history (especially botany and zoology)
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neurobiologist
a specialist in neurobiology
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physiologist
a biologist specializing in physiology
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radiobiologist
a biologist who studies the effects of radiation on living organisms
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sociobiologist
a biologist who studies the biological determinants of social behavior
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systematist, taxonomer, taxonomist
a biologist who specializes in the classification of organisms into groups on the basis of their structure and origin and behavior
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vivisectionist
a biologist who cuts open live animals for research
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animal scientist, zoologist
a specialist in the branch of biology dealing with animals
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cytogeneticist
a geneticist who specializes in the cellular components associated with heredity
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bug-hunter, bugologist, entomologist
a zoologist who studies insects
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ethologist
a zoologist who studies the behavior of animals in their natural habitats
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herpetologist
a zoologist who studies reptiles and amphibians
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ichthyologist
a zoologist who studies fishes
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lumper
a taxonomist who classifies organisms into large groups on the basis of major characteristics
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malacologist
a zoologist specializing in the study of mollusks
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mammalogist
one skilled in the study of mammals
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mycologist
a botanist who specializes in the study of fungi
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neuroscientist
a neurobiologist who specializes in the study of the brain
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bird watcher, ornithologist
a zoologist who studies birds
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pomologist
someone versed in pomology or someone who cultivates fruit trees
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propagator
someone who propagates plants (as under glass)
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protozoologist
a zoologist who studies protozoans
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divider, splitter
a taxonomist who classifies organisms into many groups on the basis of relatively minor characteristics
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virologist
a specialist in virology
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Gray, Louis Harold Gray
English radiobiologist in whose honor the gray (the SI unit of energy for the absorbed dose of radiation) was named (1905-1965)
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type of:
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scientist
a person with advanced knowledge of one or more sciences
Pronunciation
US
/baɪˈɑlədʒɪst/
UK
/baɪˈɒlədʒɪst/
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DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘biologist'.
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