dissimilar
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of dissimilar
Explanation
If your sister has dark skin and dark hair, and you have fair skin and fair hair, people might say that your looks are dissimilar or not alike. Inside of dissimilar you find similar which means alike. By now, you've probably figured out that dis at the beginning of a word tells you the word means the opposite of whatever comes after. That rule holds here. Dissimilar is the opposite of similar. You've probably heard that you should not use double negatives. Well with dissimilar, it's okay to say something like, "Art is not dissimilar to music in that it is a creative activity. Here, "not dissimilar" means similar.
Vocabulary lists containing dissimilar
100 SAT Words Beginning with "D"
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Power Prefix: Dis-
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"The MGMT Solution," Vocabulary from Chapter 10
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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.
McLaren are not currently in as competitive a position as Red Bull, but their season has not been dissimilar in pattern.
From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2026
Class arrangements, in short, are not dissimilar to those in prewar Oxford when Tolkien was giving literary shape to his curious imaginings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
Budgeting for this trip is not dissimilar from budgeting for any other vacation.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 19, 2026
It’s a lifestyle not entirely dissimilar to the rigorous training of an ice-skating prodigy, putting in the work at all hours to hone their skill.
From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2026
The swordswoman and I are not so dissimilar.
From "The Woman Warrior" by Maxine Hong Kingston
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
