familiarity

noun fa·mil·iar·i·ty \ fə-ˌmi-lē-ˈ(y)er-ə-tē , -ˈ(y)a-rə- ; -ˌmil-ˈyer- , -ˌmil-ˈya-rə- \

|Updated on: 11 Jun 2018

Examples: familiarity in a Sentence

Definition of familiarity

plural familiarities

1 a : the quality or state of being familiar

b : a state of close relationship : intimacy

2 a : absence of ceremony : informality

b : an unduly informal act or expression : impropriety

c : a sexual liberty

3 : close acquaintance with something

See familiarity defined for English-language learners

See familiarity defined for kids

Examples of familiarity in a Sentence

He spoke to everyone with the easy familiarity of an old friend.
the elderly couple enjoys a familiarity that is the result of many years of happy marriage

Recent Examples of familiarity from the Web

In the name of familiarity, draft analyst Rob Rang compared him to John Greco, who could play anywhere on the line while starting 62 games for the Browns between 2012-16.

— doug lesmerises, cleveland.com, "Austin Corbett has to join the Browns' fight to replace Joe Thomas at left tackle: Doug Lesmerises," 28 Apr. 2018
The familiarity of a pet's bed, a favorite toy that's too big to bring along — all of these things help to achieve a special level of comfort that's difficult to find in a clinic.

— kate bennis, Good Housekeeping, "How Dog Acupuncture Could Change Your Pet's Life," 27 Apr. 2018
But this time the familiarity of the cut felt powerful.

— simone kitchens, Glamour, "Why I'm Finally Embracing My Triangle Hair," 22 Mar. 2018
The air of familiarity is even more pronounced among new musicals, with all four of this year's Tony nominees — The Band's Visit, Frozen, Mean Girls and SpongeBob SquarePants — adapted from film or TV properties, not for the first time.

— david rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, "Broadway Hits Record $1.65 Billion Season Powered by Bruce Springsteen," 23 May 2018
All carried some sort of familiarity into Tuesday's game, which rapidly unraveled on the rookie southpaw.

— chandler rome, Houston Chronicle, "Bottom of lineup powers Astros' rout of Giants," 22 May 2018
Yet the quest for comfort — for softness and sameness, for friendliness and familiarity, for a place to plop down and relax in peace — seems perfectly natural and fundamentally American.

— linda rodriguez mcrobbie, BostonGlobe.com, "Don’t get too comfortable: America’s relentless pursuit of convenience and relaxation," 19 May 2018
These could be flashes of light, geometric shapes, distortions of faces, auditory or visual hallucinations, a feeling of familiarity or unreality, the urge to move a specific limb, and so on.

— christof koch, Scientific American, "What Is Consciousness?," 8 May 2018
That familiarity among teammates, many of whom play on the same club team in the offseason, made for a seamless transition when Blanford stepped in as the last line of defense.

— j.c. carnahan, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Oviedo goalkeeper Samantha Blanford overcomes injuries for state finalists," 22 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'familiarity.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.