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

Gift options span across all categories, including home, fashion, and gardens—including this $5 curtain tie-back deal that already sold more than 4,000 times. —Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 28 Nov. 2025

But that product, like many others in the category, caters to adult control. —Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 28 Nov. 2025

Ready or not, the best Amazon Black Friday deals are here and as category-spanning as ever across the home. —Nashia Baker, Architectural Digest, 28 Nov. 2025

Best Amazon Black Friday Deals Under $25 Some of the best Black Friday deals across categories ring in at less than $25. —Isabel Garcia, PEOPLE, 28 Nov. 2025

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
• extempore
• feudatory
• gustatory

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