zoo

1 of 2

noun

plural zoos
1
: a facility with usually indoor and outdoor settings where living, typically wild animals are kept especially for public exhibition

called also zoological garden, zoological park

2
: a place, situation, or group marked by crowding, confusion, or unrestrained behavior
The convention was a zoo.

zoo-

2 of 2

combining form

variants or before a vowel zo-
1
: animal : animal kingdom or kind
zooid
zoology
2
: motile
zoospore

Examples of zoo in a Sentence

Noun The sixth grade classroom was a zoo after recess. The supermarket was a real zoo on the night before the storm.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Aptly named, the zoo has a kangaroos and emus as well as a young capybara, according to a Facebook post. Lillian Metzmeier, Louisville Courier Journal, 3 Oct. 2025 Bao Li and Qing Bao, both three years old, joined the zoo in January after the previous panda tenants, Mei Xiang, Tian Tian, and their cub, Xiao Qi Ji, returned to China when their lease expired in November 2023. Sudiksha Kochi, USA Today, 2 Oct. 2025 Canada’s last captive whales will remain at the Marineland park near Niagara Falls for now after the federal government denied the zoo’s request to ship the 30 belugas to China. CNN Money, 2 Oct. 2025 Comparing the zoo and wild populations revealed that the gaps were often smaller in zoos, but rarely disappeared. Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 1 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for zoo

Word History

Etymology

Noun

short for zoological garden

Combining form

borrowed from Greek zōo-, zōio-, combining form from zôion "animal," derivative from the base of zṓō, zṓein (Homeric), zô, zên (Attic) "to be alive, live," going back to Indo-European *gwi̯éh3-(u)- "live" (whence also Tocharian B śāyau "[I] live"), full grade of a stem attested elsewhere with zero grade as *gwih3-u-, whence Latin vīvō, vīvere "to live," Old Church Slavic živǫ, žiti, Old Prussian giwa "(s/he) lives," Latvian dzīvu "(I) live," Sanskrit jīvati "(s/he) lives," Avestan juuaiti

Note: See also bio-, quick entry 1.

First Known Use

Noun

1835, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of zoo was in 1835

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Zoo.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/zoo. Accessed 5 Oct. 2025.

Kids Definition

zoo

noun
plural zoos
: a garden or park where living usually wild animals are kept for showing to the public

More from Merriam-Webster on zoo

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