sympatric

adjective

sym·​pat·​ric sim-ˈpa-trik 

1

: occurring in the same area

2

: occupying the same geographical range without loss of identity from interbreeding

sympatric species

also : occurring between populations that are not geographically separated

sympatric speciation

compare allopatric

sympatrically

sim-ˈpa-tri-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

sympatry

ˈsim-ˌpa-trē 

noun

Examples of sympatric in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In a recent study of three sympatric stingray species along a heterogeneous coastal system in northeastern Brazil, researchers examined zinc isotopes in muscle tissue alongside carbon and nitrogen isotopes. — Melissa Cristina Márquez, Forbes.com, 11 July 2026

And among the types of speciation that do not, the most important is called sympatric. — Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 10 May 2023

But other researchers say the research appears to show how sympatric speciation happens—and in this case, happened so quickly. — Elizabeth Pennisi, Science | AAAS, 25 Mar. 2021

Word History

Etymology

sym- + Greek pátra "native country, homeland" (derivative from the stem of patḗr "father") + -ic entry 1 — more at father entry 1

Note: The word was introduced by the British biologist Edward Bagnall Poulton (1856-1943) in the 1903 Presidential Address to the Entomological Society of London, published in the Transactions of the Entomological Society of London for 1903 (London, 1903-04), p. xc.

First Known Use

circa 1904, in the meaning defined at sense 1