multimodal
Americanadjective
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having more than one mode.
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Statistics. having more than one modal value.
a multimodal distribution.
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Transportation. intermodal.
Usage
What does multimodal mean? Multimodal means having or using a variety of modes or methods to do something. Multimodal is a general term that can be used in many different contexts. It also has more specific uses in the fields of statistics and transportation. Example: Ms. Johnson used a multimodal approach to teaching English—she relied on slideshows, movies, and student performances to supplement the textbook.
Etymology
Origin of multimodal
Explanation
When you use several different methods to do something, it's multimodal. A multimodal presentation might involve giving a speech while referring to a poster that's illustrated with pictures of your main points. Anything that makes use of more than one technique can be described as multimodal, like your favorite graphic novel, which includes both written text and illustrations. This term shows up a lot in statistics, too, for statistical distributions with several peaks, or "modes." Multimodal comes from the Latin roots multus, "many," and modus, "manner or mode."
Vocabulary lists containing multimodal
Lessons 3–4
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Unit 10, Week 2
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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.
Scaling intelligence in one dimension is a much more efficient engineering task than trying to build a multimodal model with capabilities across writing, coding and image generation.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 19, 2026
IBM’s reach spans database systems, app developer tools, and other multimodal computing environments that process and analyze several different types of data.
From Barron's ● Apr. 10, 2026
"We wondered if there was a simpler way than starting from scratch each time you confront a problem in multimodal AI."
From Science Daily ● Mar. 3, 2026
Gur, the CEO of Fal, which hosts multimodal generative AI models for developers, said he tracks revenue per head count.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 23, 2026
Solos’s complaint, filed Friday, alleges the defendants infringed on Solos’s patents involving smartglasses, including functions such as multimodal sensing, audio processing, intelligent assistance and integrated-system architectures for real-time user interaction.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 23, 2026
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.
