otherness

[ uhth-er-nis ]

/ ˈʌð ər nɪs /

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noun

the state or fact of being different or distinct.

the quality or state of being perceived or treated as different, foreign, strange, etc.: Certain ethnic groups embrace their otherness.

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Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of otherness

First recorded in 1580–90; other + -ness

historical usage of otherness

See xenophobia.

Words nearby otherness

otherguess, other half, otherize, otherkin, other man, otherness, other ranks, other side of the coin, other side of the tracks, other than, other things being equal

How to use otherness in a sentence

These experiences no doubt informed her work, especially her novels, which both centered on racial passing, as well as on themes of isolation and otherness.
What To Know About the Novel Passing Before Watching the Netflix Movie|Cady Lang|November 12, 2021|Time
I also love that this book is about a woman of color exploring her connection to nature, including the role of her Hindu upbringing in that relationship and her own feeling of otherness.
The Best Adventure Travel Books of 2020|Heather Greenwood Davis|December 15, 2020|Outside Online
Only Too—ticky helps him learn to respect them in their otherness.
Tove Jansson, Queen of the Moomins|John Garth|August 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It also nudges us toward a different view of the brain—in which a bit more otherness is present, intertwined with self.
Scientists Find Bacteria Where It Isn’t Supposed to Be: The Brain|Amanda Schaffer|March 17, 2013|DAILY BEAST

When I entered middle school, I was crushingly self-conscious of my otherness.
Living On—And Leaving—America’s Biggest Commune|Rena Mundo Croshere|November 23, 2012|DAILY BEAST
I “embrace” my “otherness,” to spew that overused phrase of early '90s identity reclamation.
Norway’s New Cultural Anxiety|Keshni Kashyap|July 24, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Church spokesman Michael Purdy describes the ads as an attempt to downplay Mormon “otherness.”
Mormons Rock!|Walter Kirn|June 5, 2011|DAILY BEAST
It is the "otherness," not the sameness, which makes Him desirable and potent in the daily round of life.
Preaching and Paganism|Albert Parker Fitch
But that is because He offers the most intelligible approach to that very "otherness" in the person of the godhead.
Preaching and Paganism|Albert Parker Fitch
Matter is not identical with otherness itself, but with that part of otherness which is opposed to real beings, and to reasons.
Plotinos: Complete Works, v. 1|Plotinos (Plotinus)
If it be otherness-in-itself, it is so not because it is something qualified, because quality is not something qualified.
Plotinos: Complete Works, v. 1|Plotinos (Plotinus)
If this thing be only other, it is not such by itself, it is so only by otherness, as a thing that is identical by identity.
Plotinos: Complete Works, v. 1|Plotinos (Plotinus)

British Dictionary definitions for otherness

otherness

/ (ˈʌðənɪs) /

noun

the quality of being different or distinct in appearance, character, etc

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

otherness

Origin of otherness

historical usage of otherness

Words nearby otherness

Words related to otherness

How to use otherness in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for otherness