sundry
Americanadjective
idioms
determiner
pronoun
noun
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(plural) miscellaneous unspecified items
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also called: extra. cricket a run not scored from the bat, such as a wide, no-ball, bye, or leg bye
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of sundry
before 900; Middle English; Old English syndrig private, separate, equivalent to syndr- (mutated form of sundor asunder ) + -ig -y 1; akin to sunder
Explanation
A teenager emptying out his backpack at the end of the school year might find sundry items at the bottom, meaning that the backpack was filled with a random collection of unrelated things — an old stick of gum, a broken pair of sunglasses, crumpled pieces of paper, and so forth. Most people associate the word sundry with the old-fashioned drugstore in their neighborhood that used to sell all sorts of odds and ends, from magazines to hairbrushes. The word is typically used as an adjective to describe a collection of various different items found in one place, as in — "I discovered records, perfume bottles, and sundry items at my neighbor's yard sale." The phrase "all and sundry" refers collectively to a group of people, as in, "I invited all and sundry of my relatives to my tea party."
Vocabulary lists containing sundry
"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act IV
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"Of Plymouth Plantation," Vocabulary from the historical account
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Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)
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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.
Sundry as Twitter’s scandals might seem, they share a common source: a broken business model that is fundamentally at odds with the freewheeling nature of its platform.
From Washington Post • Aug. 30, 2022
Sundry other military artifacts include a German Enigma machine, used to code military communications during World War II, and a Soviet Scud ballistic missile system.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 4, 2022
In the early days their weekly show appeared on the YouTube channel Geek and Sundry, but over the years it has developed into a significant media business, with its own production company, studios and website.
From BBC • Sep. 20, 2021
There’s also Wil Wheaton’s “Titansgrave” and “Critical Role,” both on the Geek & Sundry channel.
From Salon • Nov. 13, 2016
Sandhya's Splendiferous Sundry now boasted the most affordable astrolabes, and the prices from Woodfolk's Wonderous Wares flickered angrily.
From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton
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.
