natural history

noun

1

: a treatise on some aspect of nature

2

: the natural development of something (such as an organism or disease) over a period of time

3

: the study of natural objects especially in the field from an amateur or popular point of view

Examples of natural history in a Sentence

the natural history of bees

We went to the Natural History Museum.

Recent Examples on the Web

The series marks the first time a natural history production has captured a lion’s journey from cub life to adulthood. — Kelli Bender, PEOPLE, 15 Aug. 2026

The collection was initially offered to the Natural History Museum in London and to Amgueddfa Cymru (a natural history museum in Wales) for what is said to have been an eight-figure sum. — Anne Doran, ARTnews.com, 12 Aug. 2026

Kelcee Smith There’s something almost magical about wandering through the collections of a natural history museum. — Melissa Cristina Márquez, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026

These unusual encounters are more than fascinating natural history. — Cyril Grueter, Scientific American, 8 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1534, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for natural history

• consistory
• ethnohistory
• mystery

Kids Definition

natural history

noun

: the study of natural objects and especially plants and animals as they live in nature from an amateur or popular point of view

Medical Definition

natural history

noun

: the natural development of something (as an organism or disease) over a period of time

increasing knowledge of the natural histories of tumors

—H. S. N. Greene