selectivity
the state or quality of being selective.
Electricity. the property of a circuit, instrument, or the like, by virtue of which it can distinguish oscillations of a particular frequency.
Radio. the ability of a receiving set to receive any one of a band of frequencies or waves to the exclusion of others.
Origin of selectivity
1Words Nearby selectivity
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use selectivity in a sentence
This odd selectivity is not peculiar to primates — there are countless examples of pathogens devastating certain host species but not others.
Researchers Read the Sugary ‘Language’ on Cell Surfaces | Rachel Crowell | May 3, 2021 | Quanta MagazineI would imagine it’s a long list of, you know, 500 schools on your wall ordered roughly by selectivity.
Paying for College Can Be Overwhelming. Here's What You Need to Know to Find an Affordable Option | Sean Gregory | February 5, 2021 | TimeLimited agency talent and budgetary pressures will only heighten this selectivity going forward.
The remarkable selectivity that neurons show, Quiroga argues, isn’t absolute.
Person, Woman, Man, Camera, TV - Issue 93: Forerunners | Adithya Rajagopalan | December 2, 2020 | NautilusThis selectivity is partially why optogenetics is so powerful.
Scientists Found a New Way to Control the Brain With Light—No Surgery Required | Shelly Fan | October 13, 2020 | Singularity Hub
This is due in part to individual attention given the defendants, but also the selectivity of the courts.
From PTSD to Prison: Why Veterans Become Criminals | Matthew Wolfe | July 28, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTBut their selectivity in applying scripture shows the depth of their hypocrisy.
Why Black Preachers Pretend a Key Civil-Rights Leader Didn’t Exist | Mansfield Frazier, Larry Durstin | May 16, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTWhile only 20 years old, Prince Valentine laments the selectivity inherent in international justice.
Liberian Nostalgia for War Criminal Charles Taylor | Finlay Young | April 28, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTShe even has a name for this phenomenon: the socio-emotional selectivity theory.
Like a thunderstorm creating radio static, there was no selectivity.
The Penal Cluster | Ivar Jorgensen (AKA Randall Garrett)The rare-earths possess the property of selectivity and are fortunately highly refractory.
Artificial Light | M. LuckieshThis selectivity of absorption may account for the difference in the toxicity of zinc salts to plants in the various soils.
Inorganic Plant Poisons and Stimulants | Winifred E. BrenchleyCertainly the principle of selectivity is a byway of possibilities.
Artificial Light | M. LuckieshThe effect of the selectivity of the “yellow spot” is noticeable in viewing certain colors.
Visual Illusions | Matthew Luckiesh
British Dictionary definitions for selectivity
/ (sɪˌlɛkˈtɪvɪtɪ) /
the state or quality of being selective
the degree to which a radio receiver or other circuit can respond to and separate the frequency of a desired signal from other frequencies by tuning
the principle that welfare services should go only to those whose need is greatest, as revealed by needs tests, means tests, 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
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