biological

adjective

bi·o·log·i·cal | \ ˌbī-ə-ˈlä-ji-kəl

variants: or less commonly biologic \ ˌbī-ə-ˈlä-jik

Definition of biological

1 : of or relating to biology or to life and living processes

2 : used in or produced by applied biology

3 : connected by direct genetic relationship rather than by adoption or marriage her biological father

Other Words from biological Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about biological

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Synonyms & Antonyms for biological

Synonyms

birth, consanguineous, natural

Antonyms

adopted, adoptive, nonbiological

Examples of biological in a Sentence

the rights of the biological father in this case

Recent Examples on the Web

Authorities earlier confirmed Freund is the biological father of Cunningham’s 4-year-old son. — Christy Gutowski, chicagotribune.com, "Attorney for estate of AJ Freund suggests lawsuit is likely in beating death of 5-year-old Crystal Lake boy," 8 July 2019 While the search for the shipwreck proved unfruitful, the dive encountered interesting biological phenomenon including at least 11 sharks circling and feeding on the carcass of an 8-foot-long swordfish. — Richard Tribou, orlandosentinel.com, "Video captures deep-sea fish swallowing a shark," 8 July 2019 How does a neuroscientist even begin to piece together a biological basis of morality? — Sigal Samuel, Vox, "How your brain invents morality," 8 July 2019 Holmes, a professor of biological psychiatry at the University of Southampton in England, wrote in an email. — Washington Post, The Denver Post, "Colorado Alzheimer’s researchers shift focus after failures; begin testing leukemia medicine as treatment," 6 July 2019 The datasets gathered by digital apps function like biobanks, which store biological samples for use in research. — Nicole Wetsman, The Verge, "Data from health apps offers opportunities and obstacles to researchers," 3 July 2019 So far the museum has completed dozens of labels for its extensive collection, which includes sections of brains, hearts, tumors and other biological remains. — Jennifer Nalewicki, Smithsonian, "How One Museum Is Giving a Voice to Former Mental Health Patients," 2 July 2019 The police report said the couple was not married, and the suspect is not the biological father of the child. — Aubrey Carpenter, azcentral, "Glendale man suspected of killing his girlfriend and her 4-year-old daughter," 2 July 2019 Understanding which pieces of the biological puzzle are interchangeable and which are not is indispensable for the construction of knowledge paradigms. — Ryan Dalton, Scientific American, "Decoding the Language of Neurons," 2 July 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'biological.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.