uniqueness
Americannoun
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uniquenesses
plural
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the quality of being unlike anything else of its kind or of being solitary in type or characteristics.
Owing to its physical and behavioral uniqueness, the osprey is classified in its own family.
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the quality of being unequaled, incomparable, or unusual.
Critics are praising the uniqueness of her performance art.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of uniqueness
First recorded in 1800–05; unique ( def. ) + -ness ( def. )
Explanation
Are you one of a kind? Then you must have some kind of uniqueness, some quality that makes you stand out from all the rest. When you break down the word uniqueness, it’s easy to see what it means. First you notice the word unique, which means “one of a kind.” Then you notice -ness, a common suffix that’s used to form nouns that refer to a state of being. Put it together and you get uniqueness, a noun used to describe that certain something that makes a person or thing uncommon or singular, like "the uniqueness of a famous opera singer’s voice."
Vocabulary lists containing uniqueness
Sula
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The Suffix -ness, Part 4
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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.
See Examples For:
But uniqueness doesn’t exempt college athletics from competition law.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
“Our uniqueness is a credit to our amazing volunteers.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
In a three-star review, Metro's Charlotte Minter said, external said the TV show "won't hit the sweet spot for diehard fans" and was "lacking in uniqueness to justify being a prequel".
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026
The deep and liquid market for Treasuries also means investors are likely find a buyer or seller for their securities, a factor that adds a touch of uniqueness to U.S. debt.
From Barron's ● Jun. 15, 2026
She thought of those snowflake and fingerprint stories about the perfect uniqueness of each one and wondered, “Are we supposed to feel good about that?”
From "Habibi" by Naomi Shihab Nye
Brain research on women only really took off in the 1990s so what we are finding today are the uniquenesses of men and women.
From New York Times ● Dec. 19, 2016
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.
