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# ecosystem

noun (an ecosystem, ecosystems)

«ecosystem» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. An ecosystem is all the living things in one place — plants, animals, fungi and tiny germs — together with the non-living things around them, like water, soil, air and sunlight, all affecting each other. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/ecosystem/#m1)
2. (figurative) An ecosystem is a group of things or companies that work closely together, like apps, phones and computers made to work together. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/ecosystem/#m2)

### In the lessons

In science lessons pupils study ecosystems such as ponds, forests, coral reefs, deserts and the Australian bush; they learn about food chains, producers, consumers and decomposers, and how one change (pollution, a new species) affects the whole system. In everyday talk «tech ecosystem» means products that work together. Phrases: «a balanced ecosystem», «damage the ecosystem», «marine ecosystem».

### Examples

- A pond is a small ecosystem. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/ecosystem/#x1)
- The Great Barrier Reef is a huge ecosystem. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/ecosystem/#x2)
- Rabbits harmed the Australian ecosystem when they spread. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/ecosystem/#x3)
- Every living thing in an ecosystem depends on others. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/ecosystem/#x4)
- Pollution can damage the whole ecosystem. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/ecosystem/#x5)
- We built a mini ecosystem in a jar. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/ecosystem/#x6)
- Removing wolves changed the ecosystem of Yellowstone. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/ecosystem/#x7)
- My phone and tablet are part of the same ecosystem. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/ecosystem/#x8)

### Note

Countable: an ecosystem (use «an» because it starts with a vowel sound). Pronounced «EE-koh-sis-tem». An ecosystem includes non-living parts; a «habitat» is just the home of one kind of living thing; a «community» is only the living things.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «ecosystem» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/E/ecosystem/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«ecosystem» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/ecosystem.html) on Mova free.