Prefix · life / biological
Signals relation to life or biological processes: biology, biography, biodiversity, biofuel.
Written by Bryan López, English teacher · Updated
Bio- comes from the Greek bios, which means "life". It shows a relation to life, to living things or to biological processes. It is the prefix for everything that has to do with living organisms, from science to the supermarket.
Today bio- has left the laboratory: on social media, your "bio" is the short text you use to introduce yourself, and on food labels in many countries, "bio" is shorthand for organic. In English the prefix keeps creating new words every year, mostly in science and technology.
Attaches to scientific nouns and adjectives:
Pronunciation: /baɪəʊ/, with the "i" and "o" clearly distinct.
bio-/baɪəʊ/
Tap the button to hear how the prefix sounds. Each word in the table has its own audio.
Bio- (life) + graphy (writing). In "biography," someone else does the writing. In "autobiography," the prefix auto- (self) adds the idea that the subject writes about their own life.
"Biodegradable" only means the material can be decomposed by living organisms. Some biodegradable materials release harmful substances as they break down. It is not a synonym for "eco-friendly" or "safe."
A trick to remember it
Think of biology, the study of life: bio- = life. biology, biography.
Exercise 1 · Form the word
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
"She used her fingerprint as a ___ identifier to unlock her phone instead of typing a code."
Exercise 3 · Pick the right one
What is the difference between "biography" and "autobiography"?
The prefix bio- signals relation to life or biological processes: biology, biography, biodiversity, biofuel.
The prefix bio- is pronounced /baɪəʊ/. For example, "biology".
"logy" becomes "biology". It is a typical example of the bio- prefix.
un-, re-, pre-, dis-, over-, in-... every beginning you need to unlock thousands of English words at once.