bioethics

UK: /ˌbaɪəʊˈɛθɪks/ US: /ˌbaɪoʊˈɛθɪks/ ,(bī′ō eth′iks)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

bi•o•eth•ics /ˌbaɪoʊˈɛθɪks/   n. [uncountable* used with a singular verb]

1. Medicine, Philosophy a field of study concerned with the social and ethical issues of certain special medical procedures such as organ transplants:
   Bioethics asks questions about what we should do or not do for terminally ill patients.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

bi•o•eth•ics  (bī′ō eth′iks), n. (used with a sing. v.)

1. Medicine, Philosophy a field of study concerned with the ethics and philosophical implications of certain biological and medical procedures, technologies, and treatments, as organ transplants, genetic engineering, and care of the terminally ill.

• 1970–75; bio- + ethics

bi′o•eth′i•cal, adj. 
bi•o•eth•i•cist  (bī′ō eth′ə sist), n. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

bioethics / ˌbaɪəʊˈɛθɪks/ noun

1. (functioning as singular) the study of ethical problems arising from biological research and its applications in such fields as organ transplantation, genetic engineering, or artificial insemination