homogeneous

adjective

ho·mo·ge·neous | \ ˌhō-mə-ˈjē-nē-əs

, -ˈjēn-yəs\

Definition of homogeneous

1 : of the same or a similar kind or nature

2 : of uniform structure or composition throughout a culturally homogeneous neighborhood

3 : having the property that if each variable is replaced by a constant times that variable the constant can be factored out : having each term of the same degree if all variables are considered a homogeneous equation

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Did You Know?

The scientific theories of Jules Verne's bold French adventurer, Michel Ardan, might have been a bit flawed (it's more accurate to classify the solar system as "heterogenous" - that is, consisting of dissimilar ingredients or constituents), but his use of the English word homogeneous was perfectly correct. Homogeneous, which derives from the Greek roots homos, meaning "same," and genos, meaning "kind," has been used in English since the mid-1600s. The similar word homogenous (originally created for the science of genetics and used with the meaning "of, relating to, or derived from another individual of the same species") can also be a synonym of homogeneous. The words need not be used exclusively in scientific contexts - one can speak of, for example, "a homogenous/homogeneous community."

Examples of homogeneous in a Sentence

In their natural state, mountains of this type are almost entirely covered by dense forest. The wooded landscape is very uniform, lacking in contrast, and any disturbance of the homogeneous green blanket is very obvious … — John Crowley, Focus on Geography, Winter 2007 One odd side effect is that, during the last 20 years, the formerly homogeneous, rather stodgy world of academic criticism has diversified into an incoherent mob of competing factions. — Walter Kendrick, New York Times Book Review, 24 Dec. 1995 The Benedictine convents for women, which had begun to be founded soon after Benedict's day, became particularly homogeneous in their social composition. The nuns of the ninth and tenth centuries were all high-born ladies, and it was almost impossible to be admitted to these convents without being a widowed or maiden relative of an important lord. — Norman F. Cantor, The Civilization of the Middle Ages, 1993 a fairly homogeneous collection of examples

Recent Examples on the Web

Furthermore, criticisms of homogeneous or formulaic lineups, often short on women, have made once novel music festivals feel a dime a dozen. — Michael Rietmulder, The Seattle Times, "Brandi Carlile and ODESZA look to break megafest mold with Mexico getaway concerts," 22 Jan. 2019 Based on a Harvard Crimson survey of freshmen entering Harvard in 2015, alumni children remain a homogeneous group. — Daniel Golden, Town & Country, "How Wealthy Families Manipulate Admissions at Elite Universities," 21 Nov. 2016 With the exception of the small tribe of devoted conservatives, progressive activists are the most racially homogeneous group in the country. — WSJ, "Notable & Quotable: The PC Class," 15 Oct. 2018 Rather than a chain of homogeneous locations, Waterstones now operates more like a constellation of independent stores, said James Daunt, the company’s managing director, who took over in 2011. — Tiffany Hsu, The Seattle Times, "Barnes & Noble struggles to survive; founder is confident of turnaround," 28 Aug. 2018 When Treadway first moved from Kansas to Faribault more than four decades ago, Faribault was an almost entirely homogeneous white community, not much different from many towns across Minnesota. — Fox News, "Somali immigrants find growing acceptance in Minnesota," 25 Aug. 2018 Growing up in a homogeneous community in Pennsylvania, the concept of marrying an African-American woman was not on the cards for my dad. — Rose Minutaglio, Town & Country, "Who Is Meghan Markle's Father, Thomas Markle Sr.?," 16 July 2018 Direct Comparison of homogeneous and heterogeneous palladium(II) catalysts for Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reactions. — Don Steinberg, WSJ, "The Female Scientist Who Wants to Blow Up Your TV," 5 Dec. 2018 West Antarctica, on the other hand, has a thinner and more-homogeneous crust more closely resembling the southern tip of South America. — Avery Thompson, Popular Mechanics, "Long-Lost Continents Under Antarctica Revealed in Old Satellite Data," 8 Nov. 2018

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