equality
Americannoun
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the state or quality of being equal; correspondence in quantity, degree, value, rank, or ability.
The district is implementing a college readiness plan to achieve equality of outcomes for its graduates applying to higher education programs.
- Synonyms:
- impartiality, sameness, identity, parity, equivalence
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uniform character, as of motion or surface.
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Mathematics.
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the relationship between equal quantities, as expressed in an equation.
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a statement that two quantities are equal; equation.
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noun
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the state of being equal
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maths a statement, usually an equation, indicating that quantities or expressions on either side of an equal sign are equal in value
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of equality
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin aequālitāt- (stem of aequālitās ); see equal, -ity
Explanation
Equality is when things are the same (equal) in some particular way. You had to rethink your campaign for equality in the household when you realized this meant doing your own laundry and sharing the remote control. Equality means "the state of being equal." It's one of the ideals a democratic society, and so the fight to attain different kinds of equality, like racial equality, gender equality, or equality of opportunity between rich and poor, is often associated with progress toward that ideal of everyone being truly equal. Equality doesn't have to be used only for social ideals, though. There can be equality in weight between two barrels of apples, or between two molecules.
Vocabulary lists containing equality
Figurative Language in King's "I Have a Dream" Speech (1963)
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"The Civil Rights Movement"
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Dear Martin
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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.
“It is alarming,” said Jorge Reyes Salinas, communications director for Equality California.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 1, 2026
It followed the Equality and Human Rights Commission's ruling, external that Live Nation - the owners of Festival Republic which runs Reading and Leeds, Download and Wireless - needed to make events more accessible.
From BBC • Jun. 26, 2026
"Equality, peaceful assembly, freedom of expression and movement, and protection from arbitrary detention are fundamental rights," it added.
From Barron's • Jun. 11, 2026
The guidance was published on Thursday following the landmark Supreme Court ruling last year that the definition of a woman under the Equality Act should be based on biological sex.
From BBC • May 21, 2026
Equality is just another one of her abstractions.
From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García
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.
