typical
Americanadjective
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of the nature of or serving as a type or representative specimen.
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conforming to a particular type.
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Biology. exemplifying most nearly the essential characteristics of a higher group in natural history, and forming the type.
the typical genus of a family.
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characteristic or distinctive.
He has the mannerisms typical of his class.
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pertaining to, of the nature of, or serving as a type or emblem; symbolic.
adjective
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being or serving as a representative example of a particular type; characteristic
the painting is a typical Rembrandt
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considered to be an example of some undesirable trait
that is typical of you!
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of or relating to a representative specimen or type
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conforming to a type
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biology having most of the characteristics of a particular taxonomic group
a typical species of a genus
Other Word Forms
- nontypical adjective
- nontypicalness noun
- quasi-typical adjective
- typicality noun
- typically adverb
- typicalness noun
- untypical adjective
Etymology
Origin of typical
First recorded in 1605–15; from Medieval Latin typicālis, equivalent to Late Latin typic(us) (from Greek typikós, equivalent to týp(os) type + -ikos -ic ) + Latin -ālis -al 1
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.
One advertisement is a video of a young woman talking to the camera in a confessional style typical of influencers.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 9, 2026
The Games organizing group has agreed to pay any costs that exceed the city’s typical expenditures.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026
Every investor alive has been trained by four decades of falling rates to believe recession means rate cuts, which means that bonds rally, which means a typical 60/40 stock-bond portfolio has a shock absorber.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 9, 2026
Scientists thought the fossil showed eight arms, fins and other features typical of an octopus.
From BBC • Apr. 8, 2026
When Bobby, as was typical, arrived past two o’clock, the restaurant would be sparsely filled: perhaps a Danish hippie, two American tourists, and three young local girls preoccupied with what they thought was important gossip.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
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.
