various
Americanadjective
-
of different kinds, as two or more things; differing one from another.
Various experiments have not proved his theory.
-
marked by or exhibiting variety or diversity.
houses of various designs.
- Synonyms:
- sundry
-
presenting or having many different qualities or aspects.
a woman of various talent.
- Synonyms:
- divers, varied, variegated, diversified
-
having a variety of colors; varicolored.
-
different from each other; dissimilar.
-
living at various hotels.
-
individual (in a group, class, kind, etc.); separate.
permission from various officials in Washington.
pronoun
determiner
adjective
-
of different kinds, though often within the same general category; diverse
various occurrences
his disguises are many and various
-
(prenominal) relating to a collection of separate persons or things
the various members of the club
-
displaying variety; many-sided
his various achievements are most impressive
-
poetic variegated
-
obsolete inconstant
Usage
What are other ways to say various? Various means “of different kinds” or “differing one from another.” How does various compare to different, distinct, and diverse? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of various
First recorded in 1545–55; from Latin varius “speckled, variegated,” hence “manifold, diverse”; see -ous
Explanation
Various describes several different kinds of things, like a candy shop that is home to various sweets, from lollipops to chocolate fudge. Various comes from the Latin word varius, meaning "changing, different, diverse." If you have various interests, you have a lot of them, and they represent a range — you might love hip hop, movies from the 1940s, fixing cars, and reading fashion magazines. Various can convey a high number, like when you say, "Various people want to get involved with the park clean-up." This means a lot of people want to help.
Vocabulary lists containing various
List 1
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
"How Smart Are Animals?" Vocabulary from the science article
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
List 8
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
The defense fell flat as angry gamers began referring to the company as “Slopvidia” across various social-media platforms.
From MarketWatch • May 23, 2026
In a statement, Israel's prison service said various allegations were "false and entirely without factual basis".
From BBC • May 22, 2026
He posits that all the various forms of our modern alienation are connected, drawing throughlines that are both preposterous and incisive as he shows his work.
From Salon • May 22, 2026
His family acquired on the cheap a museum-quality collection of Old Master and French Impressionist paintings, which they displayed in their various idiosyncratic homes.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 22, 2026
“We spent a lot of time building Black-Scholes models ourselves, and seeing what happened when you changed various assumptions in them,” said Jamie.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
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.
