ubiquitous
Americanadjective
adjective
Synonym Usage
See omnipresent.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ubiquitous
First recorded in 1830–40; ubiquit(y) + -ous
Explanation
It's everywhere! It's everywhere! When something seems like it's present in all places at the same time, reach for the adjective ubiquitous. "Cities like Singapore aim to cloak themselves in ubiquitous, free Wi-Fi in the next few years," The Wall Street Journal reported recently — meaning that those savvy Singaporeans will find a wireless connection everywhere they go. The word comes from the Latin ubique, meaning — you guessed it — "everywhere." The usual pronunciation is "yoo-BIK-wih-tihs," but Joseph Heller must have had the older variant "ooh-BIK-wih-tihs" in mind when he wrote in Catch-22 that a character "padded through the shadows fruitlessly like an ubiquitous spook."
Vocabulary lists containing ubiquitous
300 Most Difficult "SAT" Words
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100 Words to Make You Sound Smart
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Vocabulary from "Stop Expecting Games to Build Empathy" by Julie Muncy
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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.
She was named to Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people in sports in 2026 and has been a ubiquitous presence on red carpets, major sporting events and galas.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
Several students spoke up, with some saying they understood the new ban, while others argued it was "infantilising" in a world where mobile phones had become ubiquitous.
From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026
From roadside billboards to casual ads posted in town cafes, invitations to participate are so ubiquitous as to give the curious sensation that these are normal, everyday activities.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
It wants to make UPI financially sustainable without disturbing the conditions that helped make it ubiquitous.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
In addition to seeming eternal, ubiquitous, protean, and endlessly quotable, Franklin had the most sophisticated sense of timing among all the prominent statesmen of the revolutionary era.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
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.
