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zoo

zoo

474 1.0
A place where people go to see live wild animals like lions and elephants
  • noun
  • /zuː/
translation icon : zoológico
  • We took a family outing to the zoo to watch the feeding of the giraffes.
  • zoo animals
  • petting zoos
  • zoo visitors

The San Diego Zoo no longer has giant pandas.

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Examples

  • Grants from the US Fish and Wildlife Service, Earthwatch, and the Denver Zoo supported additional studies.

    Academic text (2012)
  • Last year, more Americans visited zoos than all professional baseball and football games combined.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • James, it's your first time going to the zoo, dude, are you excited?

  • Can we go to the zoo, Brian?

  • Your sister worked at the zoo?

  • And then in breaking news, the Arizona Zoo has been broken into.

  • No doubt about it, the white tigers at the Cincinnati Zoo are beautiful animals.

    Academic text (1992)
  • The San Diego Zoo no longer has giant pandas.

  • Let's go to the San Diego Zoo and look in all the cages.

  • I didn't know it, but there's a zoo in the middle of Paris.

Synonyms

menagerie
vszoo
13 8.5

A group of wild animals kept for people to see

is a public educational and conservation establishment rather than just a collection
1 2.5

A park where wild animals live in natural areas so people can see them

is more general including education and conservation beyond natural settings
safari park
vszoo
1 3.3

A park where visitors drive through to see wild animals

is a stationary public facility for viewing and conservation not focused on vehicle tours
1 3.9

A place where people go to see live wild animals

is the general public establishment focused on viewing and education

Compounds

18 2.8

A place where people can touch and feed gentle animals like rabbits and goats for fun and learning

1 2.0

A person who cares for animals in a zoo and looks after their homes

How Big

safari park
1 3.3
zoo
474 1.0
menagerie
13 8.5
petting zoo
18 2.8

Surface Forms

zoo singular
zoos plural

Etymology

Zoo comes from the Greek root zo- meaning 'animal' and is a short form of zoological garden, with the same root as zoology. So a zoo is a place where live wild animals are kept for people to see.