June 22, 2012
- biodegradable (adjective)
- What does it mean?
- : capable of being broken down especially into harmless products by the action of living things (as bacteria)
- How do you use it?
- Although newspapers are usually biodegradable, some have been found completely intact after being buried in landfills for 30 years.
- Are you a word wiz?
"Biodegradable" includes the prefix "bio-," which also appears in words such as "biology" and "biosphere." Based on what you know about those words, what does "bio-" mean?Live it up if you picked answer B! The prefix "bio-" comes from the Greek word for "life." When you see a word with "bio" in it, think of something having to do with living things. As you probably know, "biology" is the study of living things, and the "biosphere" is the part of the earth where organisms can live. The definition of "biodegradable" shows that "living things" are an important part of the meaning of that word, too.