familiarity
Americannoun
plural
familiarities-
thorough knowledge or mastery of a thing, subject, etc.
-
the state of being familiar; friendly relationship; close acquaintance; intimacy.
-
an absence of ceremony and formality; informality.
- Synonyms:
- unconstraint
-
freedom of behavior justified only by the closest relationship; undue intimacy.
-
Often familiarities. an instance of such freedom, as in action or speech.
-
a sexual liberty or impropriety.
noun
-
reasonable knowledge or acquaintance, as with a subject or place
-
close acquaintanceship or intimacy
-
undue intimacy
-
(sometimes plural) an instance of unwarranted intimacy
Other Word Forms
- overfamiliarity noun
- prefamiliarity noun
Etymology
Origin of familiarity
1350–1400; Middle English familiarite (< Anglo-French ) < Latin familiāritās intimacy. See familiar, -ity
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“He’s a guy that I have familiarity with, history and a lot of reverence for because of the gratitude from our experiences together.”
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026
What happened next had an eerie feeling of familiarity about it.
From Slate • Mar. 29, 2026
Buying the assets in the overflow fund lets Calpers keep all profits and avoid fees, they said, while familiarity with the assets allowed Calpers to move quickly.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026
Noticing that requires a familiarity with history that most lack.
From Salon • Mar. 13, 2026
Anya repeated each word, comforted at the familiarity of most of it.
From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
