various

[vair-ee-uhs]

adjective

1. of different kinds, as two or more things; differing one from another.

   Various experiments have not proved his theory.

   Antonyms: similar, uniform, same, identical

2. marked by or exhibiting variety or diversity.

   houses of various designs.

   Synonyms: sundry

3. presenting or having many different qualities or aspects.

   a woman of various talent.

   Synonyms: divers, varied, variegated, diversified

4. having a variety of colors; varicolored.

5. different from each other; dissimilar.

6. variant.

7. numerous; many.

   living at various hotels.

8. individual (in a group, class, kind, etc.); separate.

   permission from various officials in Washington.

pronoun

1. Informal.,  several, many, or numerous ones.

   I spoke with various of them.

various

/ ˈvɛərɪəs /

determiner

1. 1. several different

      he is an authority on various subjects

   2. not_standard,  ( as pronoun; followed by of )

      various of them came

adjective

1. of different kinds, though often within the same general category; diverse

   various occurrences

   his disguises are many and various

2. (prenominal) relating to a collection of separate persons or things

   the various members of the club

3. displaying variety; many-sided

   his various achievements are most impressive

4. poetic,  variegated

5. obsolete,  inconstant

Usage

The use of different after various should be avoided: the disease exists in various forms (not in various different forms )

Other Word Forms

• variousness noun
• variously adverb
• nonvarious adjective
• nonvariously adverb
• nonvariousness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of various¹

First recorded in 1545–55; from Latin varius “speckled, variegated,” hence “manifold, diverse”; -ous

Word History and Origins

Origin of various¹

C16: from Latin varius changing; perhaps related to Latin vārus crooked

Example Sentences

Already, a flurry of complaints have been filed over the last 10 months accusing various L.A and California officials of failing to prepare for and respond to the fire.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The index, which calculates prices of various goods, was originally scheduled to publish on Oct.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

Behold the rollback in recent months of various climate regulations.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

The income thresholds for paying capital-gains tax at various rates are also indexed for inflation.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

Intended as a direct jab at Labour, this also serves as a critique of successive Tory administrations that ignored the economy while trying to woo liberal opinion by unilaterally disarming in various culture wars.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• assorted 
• different 
• discrete 
• disparate 
• distinct 
• diverse 
• diversified 
• individual 
• numerous 
• separate 
• sundry 
• varied 

When To Use

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.