kind of

Idioms  

1. Also, sort of. Rather, somewhat, as in I'm kind of hungry, or The bird looked sort of like a sparrow. [Colloquial; c. 1800] This usage should not be confused with a kind of or a sort of, which are much older and refer to a borderline member of a given category (as in a kind of a shelter or a sort of a bluish color). Shakespeare had this usage in Two Gentlemen of Verona (3:1): “My master is a kind of a knave.” Also see of a kind.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

kind of

“They want to build a very specific kind of world,” Vavreck said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 1, 2026

Of the first season, our critic noted that “it’s the kind of thing one will like, if one has any affection for Mr. Wilson’s brand of arrested adolescence.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026

The charity said it wanted to gather research on what kind of support men are most likely to engage with, arguing that services have often been designed without asking men first.

From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026

"It's easy for us to kind of look at them and think we know what's going on, but we don't really," Waggoner said.

From Barron's ● Nov. 1, 2026

But it does raise the question: What kind of person am I?

From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold

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Related Words

• rather

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