Scopus

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The term refers to a widely used abstract and citation database for academic journal articles; it also denotes a genus of birds known as hammerkops; additionally, it can signify any index or scope encompassing broad information in scholarly contexts
2. This word describes a comprehensive bibliographic database aiding researchers in tracking scholarly literature; it names a unique bird species characterized by its hammer-shaped head; furthermore, it implies any extensive catalog or organized list covering a range of subjects
3. It signifies a major electronic resource for academic citations across disciplines; it identifies a distinct avian species recognized for particular nesting behaviors; it also means a broad referencing tool or compilation aimed at summarizing extensive fields of knowledge

Etymology: In ancient Greek, "skopos" meant a lookout or watcher, someone posted to keep an eye on things. The root "skopein," "to look at," also gives us "microscope" and "telescope." Latin borrowed the noun as "scopus," where it came to mean a target or mark to aim at, the point a watcher's gaze was fixed on. The same Latin name was later applied to a bird, the hammerkop, now called "Scopus umbretta." It is the only member of its genus and builds an enormous domed nest of sticks, often large enough to hold a person's weight. Its name was taken from the classical word in the usual way of naming animals in Latin. Its use for a database and for broad reference works grows from the idea of a field of view. English "scope," meaning range or extent, likely came through Italian "scopo," "aim," from the same Latin source. A named index that surveys many disciplines at once is therefore a natural extension of the word's sense of a wide, unobstructed view.