individual

American  

[in-duh-vij-oo-uhl] / ˌɪn dəˈvɪdʒ u əl /

noun

• individuals
  plural

1. a single human being, as distinguished from a group.

2. a person.

   A strange individual came around asking if we wanted to buy any lamps.

3. a distinct, indivisible entity; a single thing, being, instance, or item.

4. a group considered as a unit.

5. Biology.

   1. a single organism capable of independent existence.

   2. a member of a compound organism or colony.

6. Cards. a duplicate-bridge tournament in which each player plays the same number of hands in partnership with every other player, individual scores for each player being kept for each hand.

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adjective

1. single; particular; separate.

   It's standard practice to number individual copies of a limited edition.

2. intended for the use of one person only.

   Servers handed out individual portions of a pizza to guests at the party.

3. of, relating to, or characteristic of a particular person or thing.

   The decor was highly reflective of his individual tastes.

4. distinguished by special, singular, or markedly personal characteristics; exhibiting unique or unusual qualities.

   She was known for her highly individual style of painting.

5. existing as a distinct, indivisible entity, or considered as such; discrete.

   It can be difficult to replace individual parts of a tea set if one breaks.

6. belonging to a set or group of which each is different or of a different design from the others.

   For Christmas they got a set of individual coffee cups.

individual British  

/ ˌɪndɪˈvɪdjʊəl /

adjective

1. of, relating to, characteristic of, or meant for a single person or thing

2. separate or distinct, esp from others of its kind; particular

   please mark the individual pages

3. characterized by unusual and striking qualities; distinctive

4. obsolete indivisible; inseparable

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noun

1. a single person, esp when regarded as distinct from others

2. biology

   1. a single animal or plant, esp as distinct from a species

   2. a single member of a compound organism or colony

3. logic

   1. Also called: particular. an object as opposed to a property or class

   2. an element of the domain of discourse of a theory

Usage

As a synonym for person, individual is standard, occurring in all varieties of speech and writing: Three individuals entered the room, each carrying a sheaf of papers. Some object to this use, insisting that individual can mean only “a single human being, as distinguished from a group”: An individual may have concerns that are ignored by their party.

Synonym Usage

See person.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• interindividual
  adjective
• nonindividual
  adjective
• superindividual
  adjective
• transindividual
  adjective
• individually
  adverb
• superindividually
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• individuals
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of individual

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Medieval Latin indīviduālis, equivalent to Latin indīviduus “indivisible” (from in- negative prefix + dīviduus “divided or divisible into two parts”) + -ālis adjective suffix; cf. in- ³, divide, -al ¹

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Explanation

The word individual is all about being a single entity that cannot be divided. It can mean person or even personal. A team is made up of individuals, and each individual has individual strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes individual is a way of referring to a person, quasi-formally. You might elevate the phrase "This guy walks into my shop," by saying, "This individual walks into my shop." You might also hear this word when talking about things that are divided: foods designed for lunchboxes, such as potato chips or juice boxes, are often prepackaged into individual servings.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

individual individuals

“What identifies an individual as a king is how other people behave towards him,” says a quote attributed to the actor.

From Salon ● Oct. 30, 2026

And candy prices are up 15.3% over last year, according to data from Groundwork Collaborative and Century Foundation, which also looked at how individual candy brands have become more expensive.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 30, 2026

English regional mayors due to be handed a share of tax revenues by central government will be free to use it to give cash grants to individual residents and businesses, it has emerged.

From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026

Their range of involvement on individual bills varies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026

The optician next door to us, a silent, withdrawn individual, came over and taped the top of our display window where Betsie and I could not reach.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

“While we do not enforce unilateral export controls imposed by other countries, we act firmly against companies and individuals who violate our laws and are engaged in fraudulent and dishonest practices,” the representative said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

The three aforementioned scary mommy streaming series go much farther out of their way to depict their respective parents as flawed individuals who do care about their kids.

From Salon ● Oct. 30, 2026

Listed as "captive-bred", it belongs to the world's rarest great ape species, with around 800 individuals remaining.

From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026

The Northern Health Trust has said it recognises the approach "can present significant challenges" for individuals and families who do not meet the eligibility criteria.

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026

As they began their work, none of these dedicated individuals had any idea that before this extraordinary excavation was over, more than nine years of effort and 7,500 hours of diving time would be required.

From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler

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Related Words

• lone
• original
• particular
• personal
• respective
• separate
• single
• singular
• sole
• special
• specific

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