tax·on·o·my

[tak-son-uh-mee]
noun, plural tax·on·o·mies.
1.
the science or technique of classification.
2.
a classification into ordered categories: a proposed taxonomy of educational objectives.
3.
Biology. the science dealing with the description, identification, naming, and classification of organisms.

Origin:
1805–15; French taxonomie. See taxo-, -nomy

tax·o·nom·ic [tak-suh-nom-ik] , tax·o·nom·i·cal, adjective
tax·o·nom·i·cal·ly, adverb
tax·on·o·mist, tax·on·o·mer, noun
non·tax·o·nom·ic, adjective
non·tax·o·nom·i·cal, adjective
non·tax·o·nom·i·cal·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To taxonomy
00:10
Taxonomy is always a great word to know.
So is structure. Does it mean:
mode of organization; construction and arrangement of tissues, parts, or organs
the basic category of biological classification, composed of individuals that resemble one another are able to breed with one another
Collins
World English Dictionary
taxonomy (tækˈsɒnəmɪ) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n
1.  a.  the branch of biology concerned with the classification of organisms into groups based on similarities of structure, origin, etc
 b.  the practice of arranging organisms in this way
2.  the science or practice of classification
 
[C19: from French taxonomie, from Greek taxis order + -nomy]
 
taxonomic
 
adj
 
taxo'nomical
 
adj
 
taxo'nomically
 
adv
 
tax'onomist
 
n
 
tax'onomer
 
n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

taxonomy
1828, from Fr. taxonomie (1813), introduced by Linnæus and coined irregularly from Gk. taxis "arrangement" (see taxidermy) + -nomia "method," from -nomos "managing," from nemein "manage" (see numismatics).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

taxonomy tax·on·o·my (tāk-sŏn'ə-mē)
n.

  1. The classification of organisms in an ordered system that indicates natural relationships.

  2. The science, laws, or principles of classification; systematics.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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American Heritage
Science Dictionary
taxonomy   (tāk-sŏn'ə-mē)  Pronunciation Key 


(click for larger image in new window)

The scientific classification of organisms into specially named groups based either on shared characteristics or on evolutionary relationships as inferred from the fossil record or established by genetic analysis.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary
taxonomy [(tak-son-uh-mee)]

The classification of living things. (See Linnean classification.)

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Example sentences
The management decision deals with far more than taxonomy.
The ethnic terminology used in the medical literature can be rather ill-suited
  to the task of biological taxonomy.
It isn't a bad emblem for the broader changes transforming the science of
  taxonomy.
But it is possible to attempt a euphemistic taxonomy.
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