- (in industry) the technique of using microorganisms, such as bacteria, to perform chemical processing, such as waste recycling, or to produce other materials, such as beer and wine, cheese, antibiotics, and (using genetic engineering) hormones, vaccines, etc
- another name for ergonomics
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
bi•o•tech•nol•o•gy /ˌbaɪoʊtɛkˈnɑlədʒi/USA pronunciation
n. [uncountable]
bi•o•tech•nol•o•gist, n. [countable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- Laboratorythe use of living organisms in the manufacture of drugs for environmental management.
bi•o•tech•nol•o•gist, n. [countable]
bi•o•tech•nol•o•gy
(bī′ō tek nol′ə jē),USA pronunciation n.
bi•o•tech•ni•cal
(bī′ō tek′ni kəl),USA pronunciation bi•o•tech•no•log•i•cal
(bī′ō tek′nl oj′i kəl),USA pronunciation adj.
bi′o•tech′no•log′i•cal•ly, adv.
bi′o•tech•nol′o•gist, n.
- Biochemistrythe use of living organisms or other biological systems in the manufacture of drugs or other products or for environmental management, as in waste recycling: includes the use of bioreactors in manufacturing, microorganisms to degrade oil slicks or organic waste, genetically engineered bacteria to produce human hormones, and monoclonal antibodies to identify antigens. Cf. human engineering.
- 1940–45; bio- + technology
bi′o•tech•nol′o•gist, n.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
biotechnology /ˌbaɪəʊtɛkˈnɒlədʒɪ/ n
'biotechnology' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):