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

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

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

The Bob Hope Humanitarian Award was established in 2002 to honor an individual in the television industry whose humanitarian efforts exemplify those of its namesake and his altruism.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026

Prosecutors also were considering charging at least one individual.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026

Those protein patterns were then used to estimate the biological age of individual organs.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026

Going forward, however, take the FBI’s advice: give them every last detail and document and individual.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026

Toos was a sour-faced, scowling individual whose ill-temper had made it impossible for her to keep a job until—ten years ago—she had come to work for Father.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

Both provisions focus on the use of money or the promise of benefits to get individuals to vote in a particular way.

From Salon ● Sep. 15, 2026

Even there, the population is small, with the most recent survey estimating just 140 mature individuals.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026

He said it was important to draw a distinction between the monarchy as an institution, and the individuals who led it.

From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026

Although I believe the VP and this foreign crypto platform are real, my personal banker believes the individuals involved are scammers.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026

Unlike almost any other underwater endeavor of its kind, 92 nearly full skeletons associated with specific individuals were assembled.

From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler

Related Words

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