species
Pronunciation: /ˈspiːʃiːz, -ʃɪz, ˈspiːs-/
noun ( plural )
- 1 (abbreviation: sp., spp.) Biology a group of living organisms consisting of similar individuals capable of exchanging genes or interbreeding. The species is the principal natural taxonomic unit, ranking below a genus and denoted by a Latin binomial, e.g. Homo sapiens.
- Logic a group subordinate to a genus and containing individuals agreeing in some common attributes and called by a common name.
- 2a kind or sort: a species of invective at once tough and suave
- used humorously to refer to people who share a characteristic or occupation: a political species that is becoming more common, the environmental statesman
- Chemistry & Physics a particular kind of atom, molecule, ion, or particle: a new molecular species
Origin:
late Middle English: from Latin, literally 'appearance, form, beauty', from specere 'to look'
Spelling help
The plural of species is the same as the singular. Remember that the ending is -ies.