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

But of course, the processes of aging and sickness are still biological, even if the causes of those processes lie less in our genes than previously thought. — Cathleen O'grady, Ars Technica, "Genetics play less of a role in lifespan than we thought," 8 Nov. 2018 Because of Benjamin’s cystic fibrosis, the couple wasn’t able to have biological children and had long been considering creating a family through adoption. — Elissa Strauss, Glamour, "The Great Frozen Embryo Debate," 11 Oct. 2018 The names of the biological parents are removed, and the adoptive parents are listed as mother and father. The girl wants to change her first and middle names, too. — Mark Curnutte, Cincinnati.com, "Girl who lost parents to heroin starts over: `I want a family'," 27 June 2018 Practitioners measure things like telomeres—the protective caps on chromosomes that supposedly reveal one’s biological age—to locate the source of an ailment or those last stubborn pounds. — Jancee Dunn, Vogue, "The Future of Dieting Is Here—And it Has Nothing to do With Calorie Counting," 29 Oct. 2018 The play/movie, built around the songs of ABBA, centers on a young woman who invites three men, all of whom might be her biological father, to her wedding after finding her mother's racy diary from the summer before she was born. — Kayleigh Roberts, Marie Claire, "Lily James Talks About the Pressure of Playing a Young Meryl Streep," 13 Oct. 2018 The news magazine draws on the help of DNA detective CeCe Moore to help two people, who were abandoned at birth, find their biological families. — Hal Boedeker, OrlandoSentinel.com, "'Jonestown: An American Tragedy,' Sacha Baron Cohen: This weekend," 13 July 2018 On Thursday, MyHeritage offered 5,000 testing kits as an extension of their pro bono initiative to reunite adoptees with their biological families. — John Moore, National Geographic, "Could DNA Testing Reunite Immigrant Families? Get the Facts.," 25 June 2018 Even though dinosaurs are ancestors to birds, this biological difference shows how evolution has played a role in animals that populate the world today. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Dinosaurs Could Barely Use Their Tongues," 20 June 2018

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.