singular

American  

[sing-gyuh-ler] / ˈsɪŋ gyə lər /

adjective

1. extraordinary; remarkable; exceptional.

   a singular success.

   Synonyms:

   peculiar

   Antonyms:

   usual

2. unusual or strange; odd; different.

   singular behavior.

   Synonyms:

   curious, queer, bizarre, peculiar

3. being the only one of its kind; distinctive; unique.

   a singular example.

   Synonyms:

   rare, uncommon, peculiar

4. separate; individual.

   Synonyms:

   single, peculiar

5. Grammar. noting or pertaining to a member of the category of number found in many languages that indicates that a word form has one referent or denotes one person, place, thing, or instance, as English boy and thing, which are singular nouns, or goes, a singular form of the verb go.

6. Logic.

   1. of or relating to something individual, specific, or not general.

   2. (of a proposition) containing no quantifiers, as “Socrates was mortal.”

7. Mathematics.

   1. of or relating to a linear transformation from a vector space to itself that is not one-to-one.

   2. of or relating to a matrix having a determinant equal to zero.

8. Obsolete. private.

9. Obsolete. single.

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noun

Grammar.

1. the singular number.

2. a form in the singular.

singular British  

/ ˈsɪŋɡjʊlə /

adjective

1. remarkable; exceptional; extraordinary

   a singular feat

2. unusual; odd

   a singular character

3. unique

4. denoting a word or an inflected form of a word indicating that not more than one referent is being referred to or described

5. logic of or referring to a specific thing or person as opposed to something general

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noun

1. grammar

   1. the singular number

   2. a singular form of a word

singular Cultural  

1. In nouns, pronouns, and verbs, the grammatical form that refers to only one thing. In the following sentence, the singular words are italicized: “The police officer stops anyone who crosses before the light changes.” (Compare plural; see agreement.)

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Other Word Forms

• singularly adverb
• singularness noun
• supersingular adjective
• unsingular adjective
• unsingularly adverb
• unsingularness noun

Etymology

Origin of singular

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English word from Latin word singulāris. See single, -ar ¹

Example Sentences

She was one of the great, singular, unflinching writers of her generation, which included Joan Didion, in relation to whom she had an equal or superior level of talent without the promotional ability.

From The Wall Street Journal

He later called this “a singular act of presumption,” writing, “I knew almost nothing about the anatomy of disaster, the ways of Appalachia, or anything else that could qualify me as an expert.”

From The Wall Street Journal

If the Mayer isn’t quite a singular remnant of a bygone era — there’s probably a surviving small-town movie theater somewhere near you — it can sure feel that way.

From Salon

It has been the singular lifeline for a battered Iran and its entire proxy network.

From The Wall Street Journal

Architect Paul R. Williams’ Guardian Angel Cathedral, which opened in the city in 1963, is cited as a design influence, as are the singular stocky trunk baobab trees of the African savanna.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bizarre
• exceptional
• extraordinary
• peculiar
• rare
• remarkable
• strange
• uncommon
• unimaginable
• unparalleled
• unprecedented
• unusual