disparate
adjective
dis·pa·rate
ˈdi-sp(ə-)rət 
di-ˈsper-ət,
-ˈspa-rət
1
: markedly distinct in quality or character
2
: containing or made up of fundamentally different and often incongruous elements
disparately
adverb
disparateness
noun
Did you know?
If you enjoy sorting different objects into separate categories, you're well prepared to understand the origins of disparate. The word, which first appeared in English in the 16th century, comes from the Latin verb disparāre, meaning "to divide, separate off, make different." Disparāre, in turn, comes from parāre, a verb meaning "to supply, provide, make ready or prepare." Other descendants of parāre in English include both separate and prepare, as well as repair, apparatus, and even the pugnacious vituperate ("to criticize harshly and usually publicly").
Examples of disparate in a Sentence
First during the nineteen-seventies, but with increasing momentum during the eighties, a loose community of physics researchers had begun to postulate that the disparate small particles that we learned about in high-school science class—electrons, for instance—were actually the varied vibrations of tiny open and closed looped strings.
—
Benjamin Wallace-Wells, New Yorker, 21 July 2008
The American border with Mexico is among the most economically disparate intersections in the world, but the cities on either side of the port looked almost identical—a spread of humble brick and cinder-block homes dotting a blanket of brown hills.
—Cecilia Balli, Harper's, October 2006
I made the French lemon cream tart that Greenspan credits to Hermé and got disparate reactions. An American friend loved its creaminess and felt it had a comfortingly familiar texture; a British friend … said he missed the traditional sharp, gel-like custard.
—Tamasin Day-Lewis, Saveur, November 2006
Like these imagined cities, identical twins are identical only in their blueprints. By the time they are born, they are already disparate in countless neurological and physiological ways that mostly we cannot see.
—Frank J. Sulloway, New York Review, 30 Nov. 2006
The plan, as near as anybody outside Yahoo can make out, is to stitch all those disparate organizations into one huge Frankenstein's monster of a search engine that will strike terror into the hearts of all who behold it.
—Lev Grossman, Time, 22 Dec. 2003
disparate notions among adults and adolescents about when middle age begins
Benjamin Wallace-Wells, New Yorker, 21 July 2008
The American border with Mexico is among the most economically disparate intersections in the world, but the cities on either side of the port looked almost identical—a spread of humble brick and cinder-block homes dotting a blanket of brown hills.
—Cecilia Balli, Harper's, October 2006
I made the French lemon cream tart that Greenspan credits to Hermé and got disparate reactions. An American friend loved its creaminess and felt it had a comfortingly familiar texture; a British friend … said he missed the traditional sharp, gel-like custard.
—Tamasin Day-Lewis, Saveur, November 2006
Like these imagined cities, identical twins are identical only in their blueprints. By the time they are born, they are already disparate in countless neurological and physiological ways that mostly we cannot see.
—Frank J. Sulloway, New York Review, 30 Nov. 2006
The plan, as near as anybody outside Yahoo can make out, is to stitch all those disparate organizations into one huge Frankenstein's monster of a search engine that will strike terror into the hearts of all who behold it.
—Lev Grossman, Time, 22 Dec. 2003
disparate notions among adults and adolescents about when middle age begins
Recent Examples on the Web
However, some may believe that a single, consistent standard is a more appropriate means to reach these goals, rather than singling out listings from one part of the world for disparate treatment.
—Drew Bernstein, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Even so, the original score by Mary Komasa and Antoni Komasa Lazarkiewicz, supplemented by sadcore indie tracks by Trupa Trupa, is a presence throughout, acting like a sonic glue that holds the chronologically disparate sequences of the film together while adding a distinct modernity to the tone.
—Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2025
Also, the disparate aspect of them being a Nazi.
—Antonia Blyth, Deadline, 7 Sep. 2025
The district’s disparate parts would be connected largely by two-lane highways cutting through steep slopes of places such as the Modoc National Forest, where nervous drivers must beware of a lack of guardrails.
—David Mark, The Washington Examiner, 5 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for disparate
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Drew Bernstein, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Even so, the original score by Mary Komasa and Antoni Komasa Lazarkiewicz, supplemented by sadcore indie tracks by Trupa Trupa, is a presence throughout, acting like a sonic glue that holds the chronologically disparate sequences of the film together while adding a distinct modernity to the tone.
—Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2025
Also, the disparate aspect of them being a Nazi.
—Antonia Blyth, Deadline, 7 Sep. 2025
The district’s disparate parts would be connected largely by two-lane highways cutting through steep slopes of places such as the Modoc National Forest, where nervous drivers must beware of a lack of guardrails.
—David Mark, The Washington Examiner, 5 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for disparate
Cite this Entry
“Disparate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/disparate. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
disparate
adjective
dis·pa·rate
dis-ˈpar-ət
ˈdis-p(ə-)rət
ˈdis-p(ə-)rət
: indicating or stimulating dissimilar points on the retina of each eye
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