zoo

¹

[ zoo ]

noun

, plural zoos.

1. Also called zoological garden. a parklike area in which live animals are kept in cages or large enclosures for public exhibition.
2. Informal. a place, activity, or group marked by chaos or unrestrained behavior.

zoo-

²

1. a combining form meaning “living being,” “animal,” used in the formation of compound words:

   zoometry; zooplankton.

zoo-

¹

combining_form

1. indicating animals

   zooplankton

zoo

²

/ zuː /

noun

1. a place where live animals are kept, studied, bred, and exhibited to the public Formal termzoological garden

Word History and Origins

Origin of zoo¹

First recorded in 1840–50; first two syllables of zoological garden taken as one syllable

Origin of zoo²

Combining form representing Greek zôion animal

Word History and Origins

Origin of zoo¹

from Greek zōion animal

Origin of zoo²

C19: shortened from zoological gardens (originally applied to those in London)

Idioms and Phrases

see it's a zoo .

Example Sentences

Gottlieb and her family were in New York, visiting the Central Park Zoo, when her cellphone rang.

From Los Angeles Times

While both regions have been extensively studied and many of their secrets revealed, there is still a lot we do not understand about them due to the high complexity of interacting parts, from individual synapses and the zoo of different neuron types, to the detailed connectivity rules between them.

From Science Daily

But of all the elephants in the Berlin Zoo, only 54-year-old Mary has learned how to shower with a hose.

From NewsForKids.net

Anchali is a 12-year-old Asian elephant who often gets sprayed down by zoo workers in the area next to Mary.

From NewsForKids.net

Russian President Vladimir Putin has gifted North Korea's main zoo more than 70 animals, including a lion and two brown bears, in yet another display of burgeoning relations between Moscow and Pyongyang.

From BBC

Related Words

• circus

Words That Use zoo-

What does zoo- mean?

The combining form zoo– is used like a prefix meaning “living being” or “animal.” It is often used in scientific terms, especially in biology.

The form zoo– comes from Greek zôion, meaning “animal.”

What are variants of zoo-?

When combined with words or word elements that begin with a vowel, zoo– becomes zo–, as in zooid.

When combined as a suffix, zoo– becomes –zoa or –zoon, as in protozoa or ectozoon. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use articles for zo-, -zoa, and -zoon.

Examples of zoo-

An example of a word you may have encountered that features zoo– is zoology, “the science or branch of biology dealing with animals.”

We know zoo– means “animal,” and the –logy portion of the word refers to “science,” from Greek logía. Zoology literally translates to “animal science.”

The word zoo is ultimately shortened from zoological garden; zoological is the adjective form of zoology.

What are some words that use the combining form zoo-?

• zoobiotic
• zoochlorella
• zoometry
• zoonosis
• zoophagous
• zoophile
• zoospore

What are some other forms that zoo– may be commonly confused with?

• oo-
• zygo-

Not every word that begins with the exact letters zoo– or zo-, such as zoom or zooty, is necessarily using either combining form to denote “animal.” Learn why zooty means “flamboyant” at our entry for the word.

Break it down!

The combining form –metry means “the process of measuring.” With this in mind, what is zoometry?