manifold

American  

[man-uh-fohld] / ˈmæn əˌfoʊld /

adjective

1. of many kinds; numerous and varied.

   manifold duties.

   Synonyms:

   multitudinous, various

   Antonyms:

   single, simple

2. having numerous different parts, elements, features, forms, etc..

   a manifold program for social reform.

   Synonyms:

   multifarious, divers, varied

3. using, functioning with, or operating several similar or identical devices at the same time.

4. (of paper business forms) made up of a number of sheets interleaved with carbon paper.

5. being such or so designated for many reasons.

   a manifold enemy.

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noun

manifolds plural

1. something having many different parts or features.

2. a copy or facsimile, as of something written, such as is made by manifolding.

3. any thin, inexpensive paper for making carbon copies on a typewriter.

4. Machinery. a chamber having several outlets through which a liquid or gas is distributed or gathered.

5. Philosophy. (in Kantian epistemology) the totality of discrete items of experience as presented to the mind; the constituents of a sensory experience.

6. Mathematics. a topological space that is connected and locally Euclidean.

verb (used with object)

1. to make copies of, as with carbon paper.

manifold British  

/ ˈmænɪˌfəʊld /

adjective

1. of several different kinds; multiple

   manifold reasons

2. having many different forms, features, or elements

   manifold breeds of dog

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noun

1. something having many varied parts, forms, or features

2. a copy of a page, book, etc

3. a chamber or pipe with a number of inlets or outlets used to collect or distribute a fluid. In an internal-combustion engine the inlet manifold carries the vaporized fuel from the carburettor to the inlet ports and the exhaust manifold carries the exhaust gases away

4. maths

   1. a collection of objects or a set

   2. a topological space having specific properties

5. (in the philosophy of Kant) the totality of the separate elements of sensation which are then organized by the active mind and conceptualized as a perception of an external object

verb

1. (tr) to duplicate (a page, book, etc)

2. to make manifold; multiply

manifold Scientific  

/ măn′ə-fōld′ /

1. A topological space or surface.

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Synonym Usage

See many.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• manifolder
  noun
• manifoldness
  noun
• manifoldly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• manifolds
  plural

Etymology

Origin of manifold

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English manigf(e)ald (adjective). See many, -fold

Explanation

Manifold is a smarty-pants way to say "varied," "many," or "multiple." There are many good reasons to expand your vocabulary, so you could say the benefits of learning new words are manifold. Manifold sounds like "many fold," which is what it is — something with many features, like a wallet with lots of folds so stuffed with junk that makes you sit funny when it's in your back pocket. As an adjective, manifold loves to appear in books, like Mrs. Gryce in Edith Wharton's "The House of Mirth," whose "domestic duties were manifold." As a noun, a manifold is a pipe branching into many openings, often found in car engines.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

manifold manifolds

Or is space-time — the manifold of all the events that happen throughout eternity — merely something that occurs?

From Science Daily ● Jun. 8, 2026

No, the opposition toward the candidate is viciously intense, shockingly manifold, and wide-ranging to the point of sounding almost existential.

From Slate ● Apr. 13, 2026

Complex manifold systems and pump networks blend the oil to strict contract specifications before loading it onto ships for transport to customers around the world.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 6, 2026

Nonbanks, including technology firms, have been allowed to do business that closely resembles banking, with no constraints on manifold conflicts of interest.

From Barron's ● Dec. 19, 2025

I used manifold, and so took three copies of the diary, just as I had done with all the rest.

From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker

The parts of this orchestra include equal-length exhaust runners, six-into-one manifolds, variable-geometry intakes and titanium exhaust.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2025

"The output probabilities of these networks were neatly clustered together on these thin manifolds in gigantic spaces."

From Science Daily ● Mar. 27, 2024

The rest will go for tools to make intake manifolds and fuel injection rails for the new V8.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 20, 2023

Harvard mathematician Michael Hopkins described your work on three-dimensional manifolds as “a dazzling combination of geometry and algebra.”

From Scientific American ● Nov. 22, 2022

Desdemona was standing between two air manifolds shaped like giant tubas.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides