Omnivore
/ˈɒm.nɪ.vɔːr/noun
An animal or person that eats both plant and animal matter.
Did you know?Omnivore comes from Latin roots meaning “all” + “to devour,” and it shares deep ancestry with words like victory, vehicle, and vortex through the same ancient root for turning and carrying.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*h₂eṷ-
“to eat”
Latin
Latin
omnis
“all, every”
Latin
Latin
vorare
“to devour, swallow greedily”
16th Century
Latin
omnivorus
“eating all kinds of food”
19th Century
English
omnivore
“an animal that eats both plant and animal matter”