variegated

[vair-ee-i-gey-tid, vair-i-gey-]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR variegated ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

varied in appearance or color; marked with patches or spots of different colors.

varied; diversified; diverse.

Origin of variegated

First recorded in 1655–65; variegate + -ed²

Related formsun·var·i·e·gat·ed, adjective

variegate

[vair-ee-i-geyt, vair-i-geyt]

verb (used with object), var·i·e·gat·ed, var·i·e·gat·ing.

to make varied in appearance, as by adding different colors.

to give variety to; diversify.

Origin of variegate

1645–55; < Late Latin variegātus (past participle of variegāre to make (something) look varied), equivalent to Latin vari(us) various + -eg- (combining form of agere to do; see agent) + -ātus -ate¹

Related formsvar·i·e·ga·tor, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for variegated

spotted, checkered, varied, assorted, motley, mottled, mixed, striped, changeable, diverse, kaleidoscopic, multicolored, multicolor, versicolor, particolored

Examples from the Web for variegated

Contemporary Examples of variegated

Muslim Americans are valuable, if largely unrecognized, assets to a variegated American fabric.
The Defense Department's Muslim Counterterrorists
Salmah Y. Rizvi
August 30, 2010

Historical Examples of variegated

Tulips are opening their variegated cups, and daffodils line the walls.
The Conquest of Fear
Basil King
Do not manure the ground for golden or variegated leaved shrubs.
The Mayflower, January, 1905
Various
There was a confident impelling forward of the shaft of the variegated standard.
Y Gododin
Aneurin
The gills are attached, not broad, ascending, variegated with gray and black.
The Mushroom, Edible and Otherwise
M. E. Hard
The gills are adnexed, dark slate-colored, variegated with black spores.
The Mushroom, Edible and Otherwise
M. E. Hard

British Dictionary definitions for variegated

variegated

adjective

displaying differently coloured spots, patches, streaks, etc

(of foliage or flowers) having pale patches, usually as a result of mutation, infection, etc

variegate

verb (tr)

to alter the appearance of, esp by adding different colours

to impart variety to

Derived Formsvariegation, noun

Word Origin for variegate

C17: from Late Latin variegāre, from Latin varius diverse, various + agere to make

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for variegated

variegate

"to mark with different colors," 1640s (implied in variegation), from Late Latin variegatus "made of various sorts or colors," past participle of variegare "diversify with different colors," from varius "spotted, changing, varying" (see vary) + root of agere "to drive" (see act). Related: Variegated; vareiegating.