paleobotany

noun

pa·​leo·​bot·​a·​ny ˌpā-lē-ō-ˈbä-tə-nē 

-ˈbät-nē

: a branch of botany dealing with fossil plants

paleobotanical

ˌpā-lē-ō-bə-ˈta-ni-kəl 

adjective

or less commonly paleobotanic

ˌpā-lē-ō-bə-ˈta-nik 

paleobotanically

ˌpā-lē-ō-bə-ˈta-ni-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

paleobotanist

ˌpā-lē-ō-ˈbä-tə-nist 

-ˈbät-nist

noun

Examples of paleobotany in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Among these disciplines are invertebrate and vertebrate paleontology, as well as paleobotany, paleoecology and paleoclimatology. —Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 30 Mar. 2023

But to squeeze a diverse set of practices that span cultural anthropology, paleobotany, and theoretical physics into a handful of steps is an inevitable distortion and, to be blunt, displays a serious poverty of imagination. —Daniel P. Thurs, Discover Magazine, 28 Oct. 2015

Around that time, Friis met Pedersen, a young paleobotany professor in Aarhus, who was curious about the origins of flowering plants. —Ben Crair, The New Yorker, 2 Jan. 2023

Herrera, now assistant curator of paleobotany at the Field Museum, followed Jaramillo’s advice and traveled to Cerrejón to look for a ghost: fossil leaves from the early Cenozoic. —Pablo Correa, Discover Magazine, 8 Dec. 2022

For all his deceit and disgrace, Mellaart made discoveries that led to an explosion of archaeological interest in the region, and gave a lift to the emerging science of paleobotany. —Joshua Hammer, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Aug. 2021

Get behind-the-scenes looks with Dr. Ron Tykoski, learn about paleobotany with Dr. Dori Contreras, hear paleontologists sound off on dinosaur movies, and participate in trivia, a Q&A session and more. —Shannon Sutlief, Dallas News, 23 Apr. 2020

This area has an intrinsically variable climate that alternates between flooding and drought, explains Scott Wing, research geologist and curator of paleobotany at the National Museum of Natural History. —Anna Diamond, Smithsonian, 23 Aug. 2019

Investigators of the Great Maya Aquifer Project see the (re)discovery of Balamku as a chance to implement a totally new model of cave archaeology, one that employs cutting-edge technology and specialized fields such as 3-D mapping and paleobotany. —Gena Steffens, National Geographic, 4 Mar. 2019

Word History

Etymology

paleo- + botany

First Known Use

1872, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for paleobotany

• ethnobotany
• botany
• cottony
• monotony