particular
Americanadjective
-
of or relating to a single or specific person, thing, group, class, occasion, etc., rather than to others or all; special rather than general.
one's particular interests in books.
- Synonyms:
- specific
-
immediately present or under consideration; in this specific instance or place.
Look at this particular clause in the contract.
-
distinguished or different from others or from the ordinary; noteworthy; marked; unusual.
She sang with particular warmth at last evening's concert.
- Synonyms:
- notable
- Antonyms:
- ordinary
-
exceptional or especial.
Take particular pains with this job.
-
being such in an exceptional degree.
a particular friend of mine.
-
dealing with or giving details, as an account or description, of a person; detailed; minute.
- Synonyms:
- precise, exact, careful, scrupulous
- Antonyms:
- inexact
-
exceptionally selective, attentive, or exacting; fastidious; fussy.
to be particular about one's food.
- Synonyms:
- finicky, finical, discriminating
- Antonyms:
- undiscriminating
-
Logic.
-
not general; referring to an indefinite part of a whole class.
-
(of a proposition) containing only existential quantifiers.
-
partaking of the nature of an individual as opposed to a class.
-
-
Law.
-
noting an estate that precedes a future or ultimate ownership, as lands devised to a widow during her lifetime and after that to her children.
-
noting the tenant of such an estate.
-
noun
-
particulars
plural
-
an individual or distinct part, as an item of a list or enumeration.
- Synonyms:
- particularity, feature
-
Usually particulars. specific points, details, or circumstances.
to give an investigator the particulars of a case.
-
Logic. an individual or a specific group within a general class.
idioms
adjective
-
(prenominal) of or belonging to a single or specific person, thing, category, etc; specific; special
the particular demands of the job
no particular reason
-
(prenominal) exceptional or marked
a matter of particular importance
-
(prenominal) relating to or providing specific details or circumstances
a particular account
-
exacting or difficult to please, esp in details; fussy
-
(of the solution of a differential equation) obtained by giving specific values to the arbitrary constants in a general equation
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logic (of a proposition) affirming or denying something about only some members of a class of objects, as in some men are not wicked Compare universal
-
property law denoting an estate that precedes the passing of the property into ultimate ownership See also remainder reversion
noun
-
a separate distinct item that helps to form a generalization: opposed to general
-
(often plural) an item of information; detail
complete in every particular
-
logic another name for individual
-
philosophy an individual object, as contrasted with a universal See universal
-
especially, particularly, or exactly
Synonym Usage
See special. Particular, dainty, fastidious imply great care, discrimination, and taste in choices, in details about one's person, etc. Particular implies especially care and attention to details: particular about one's clothes. Dainty implies delicate taste and exquisite cleanliness: a dainty dress. Fastidious implies being difficult to please and critical of small or minor points: a fastidious taste in styles.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of particular
First recorded in 1350–1400; from Late Latin particulāris, equivalent to Latin particul(a) “small part” ( see particle) + -āris -ar 1; replacing Middle English particuler, from Middle French, from Late Latin, as above
Explanation
As an adjective, particular describes something specific, such as when you prefer one particular type of cereal over another. The noun form means specific points or details, as in the particulars of a police investigation. The idea of particular referring to details comes from the Latin particula, which means "particle" or "small part," and in Middle English the word meant something that referred to a single person or thing. You can note that in the phrase "in particular" which means "especially." As in, one breed of dog in particular would suit you best, with your floppy ears and friendly personality.
Vocabulary lists containing particular
"The Landlady" by Roald Dahl
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Bud, Not Buddy
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On Your Mark, Get Set, Commence Your Life!
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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.
See Examples For:
At the nation’s founding, “the fear was religious tyranny of one particular church over others,” she said.
From Salon ● Aug. 14, 2026
One project that comes in for particular criticism is the costly free school meals programme, Prabowo's signature project which he vowed Friday to pursue "but with improvements and efficiency."
From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026
"Considering the governance challenges that the FAI has had to overcome in recent years, the Association feels a particular obligation to advocate for and uphold best practice."
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
And even if you didn’t care about the particular thing, you saw it, you heard it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
“You’re correct, Danny. This particular book was found during a dig, actually,” Auntie North told him, sipping her tea calmly, though her foot was bouncing a bit.
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
Rees is a racing driver and has experience as a stunt driver for TV shows, but the particulars of his claim said he had never driven a Morgan Super 3 before.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
He said he "can't get into the particulars" but "there are some people that claim that they are coaches that may not be coaches."
From Barron's ● Jun. 9, 2026
Investors have been eager to pore over the particulars, which will include financial statements, details of SpaceX’s various businesses including the recently added xAI artificial-intelligence business and the ownership structure.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
“I would never use the word swindled, but the context — yes, I have said that,” Bianco said after some back-and-forth about the particulars of his criticisms.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 6, 2026
It is certainly true to say that premodern agriculturists tended to be theists, but it does not teach us much about the particulars.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
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.
