interdisciplinary

Meaning

1. 1adjectivebefore a noun

   Using ideas and methods from more than one area of study together.

   Grammar: Usually before a noun: an interdisciplinary course.

   Patterns

   • an interdisciplinary approach to something

   The university offers an interdisciplinary course on climate and law.

   Her interdisciplinary research links biology and computer science.

   An interdisciplinary team solved the design problem.

Common combinations

interdisciplinary approach

An interdisciplinary approach helps solve complex problems.

interdisciplinary research

The lab funds interdisciplinary research on aging.

interdisciplinary team

An interdisciplinary team of nurses and engineers built the device.

interdisciplinary studies

She majored in interdisciplinary studies.

interdisciplinary collaboration

Interdisciplinary collaboration is growing in medicine.

Synonyms and how they differ

multidisciplinary

Multidisciplinary says several fields are involved, but not necessarily that they are truly merged, which interdisciplinary implies.

cross-disciplinary

Cross-disciplinary is very close, but emphasizes crossing borders between subjects.

cross-curricular

Cross-curricular is used mainly in schools for lessons that link subjects.

integrated

Integrated is a broader word and does not specifically refer to academic fields.

Opposites

Word family

discipline noun

a branch of knowledge

interdisciplinarity noun

the quality of combining several fields

disciplinary adjective

relating to one field of study

multidisciplinary adjective

involving several fields

Commonly confused: interdisciplinary or intradisciplinary?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “interdisciplinary”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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