category

noun

cat·​e·​go·​ry ˈka-tə-ˌgȯr-ē 

plural categories

1

: any of several fundamental and distinct classes to which entities or concepts belong

Taxpayers fall into one of several categories.

2

: a division within a system of classification

She competed for the award in her age category.

Synonyms of category

• type
• kind

Examples of category in a Sentence

The cars belong to the same category.

Taxpayers fall into one of several categories.

She competed for the award in her age category.

Recent Examples on the Web

Shareef Elaydi certainly falls into that top-end category. —Glenn Reeves, Mercury News, 10 May 2026

Women’s sports are getting huge right now, but even niche properties like sailing or bull riding all fall into that category, earlier on the curve, and for investors, potentially more room to run. —Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 10 May 2026

Transdermal estrogen Gels, creams and patches all fall into a category called transdermal estrogen. —Kaitlin Sullivan, NBC news, 10 May 2026

This is a category that is screaming for a shake-up. —Joe Reid, Vulture, 10 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Late Latin categoria, from Greek katēgoria predication, category, from katēgorein to accuse, affirm, predicate, from kata- + agora public assembly, from ageirein to gather

First Known Use

1588, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for category

• allegory
• amatory
• auditory
• clerestory
• crematory
• desultory
• dilatory
• dormitory
• excretory
• feudatory
• gustatory
• gyratory

Kids Definition

category

noun

cat·​e·​go·​ry ˈkat-ə-ˌgōr-ē 

-ˌgȯr-

plural categories

1

: one of the divisions or groupings used in a system of classification

"species" and "genus" are biological categories

2

: class entry 1 sense 3a, kind