SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
ecosystem
noun
A community of organisms together with the physical environment with which they interact.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Organisms and their environment
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
Return to topHabitat is a place organisms live; an ecosystem includes organisms and their interactions with that environment.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See ecosystem in use
The class studied how changes in water flow could affect the pond's ecosystem.
The model represented an ecosystem by including the garden's organisms alongside the soil, water, and other surroundings with which they interacted.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license