fauna

C2+ Topic:Animals

US /ˈfɔnə/ UK /ˈfɔːnə/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
the animals of a particular region, period, or habitat

The island's fauna includes several rare bird species.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the animals of a particular... wildlife animalsanimal life

Opposites

flora

Word family

Derived forms faunalfaunistfaunistic

Related forms faun

Etymology

A modern Latin coinage by Linnaeus (1746), from Latin 'Fauna', a rural goddess of fertility (counterpart of 'Faunus', a woodland deity), used as a collective term for the animals of a region paralleling 'flora'.

Fauna Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Animals Register & Style

External links

# fauna

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈfɔnə/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈfɔːnə/

## Meanings
1. the animals of a particular region, period, or habitat

## Examples
- The island's fauna includes several rare bird species.

## Synonyms
- wildlife
- animals
- animal life

## Antonyms
- flora

## Derived Forms
- faunal
- faunist
- faunistic

## Related Forms
- faun

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: Fauna

## Etymology
A modern Latin coinage by Linnaeus (1746), from Latin 'Fauna', a rural goddess of fertility (counterpart of 'Faunus', a woodland deity), used as a collective term for the animals of a region paralleling 'flora'.

## AI Etymology
Fauna is a modern Latin coinage by Linnaeus (1746), from Latin 'Fauna', a rural goddess of fertility (counterpart of 'Faunus', a woodland deity), used as a collective term for the animals of a region paralleling 'flora'. The development is chiefly a borrowing or learned continuation, carrying an older form and meaning into English rather than building the word from a purely native base. In present use, it is used as a noun meaning "the animals of a particular region, period, or habitat", so the historical material remains connected with the current sense rather than standing as bare ancestry. The wider English family includes derivatives such as faunal, faunist, and faunistic and related forms such as faun, showing how the same historical material continues to organize neighboring vocabulary. The named historical forms include Latin Fauna, keeping the history tied to concrete forms rather than a loose resemblance.

## Topics
- Animals
- Register & Style

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