multifarious

adjective mul·ti·far·i·ous \ ˌməl-tə-ˈfer-ē-əs \

Definition of multifarious

:having or occurring in great variety :diverse

participated in multifarious activities in high school

—

multifariousness

noun

See multifarious defined for English-language learners

See multifarious defined for kids

multifarious was our Word of the Day on 08/10/2015. Hear the podcast!

Examples of multifarious in a Sentence

the multifarious interests and activities in which Benjamin Franklin immersed himself

Recent Examples of multifarious from the Web

But what to do with a director, especially one as capable of such stylistic reinvention, such adaptability to the multifarious mutations of the commercial musical, as Prince?

— chris jones, chicagotribune.com, "'Prince of Broadway': A bunch of Hal Prince scenes can't sum up the man," 24 Aug. 2017
The increase is the result of a new goods and services tax (GST), introduced at midnight Saturday, which has turned India's multifarious state tax regimes into a single market for the first time.

— vidhi doshi, Washington Post, "Why a thousand movie theaters have closed their doors to fans in India," 3 July 2017
Fittingly, his wonderfully multifarious work drew — often simultaneously — from a panoply of familiar and foreign (at least to many Western listeners) traditions.

— george varga, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Vijay Iyer brings Ojai Music Festival to rousing, borders-blurring finish," 12 June 2017
In truth, our president matches only some aspects of Mangan’s personality because, like all of Shaw’s characters, Mangan is multifarious.

— jesse green, New York Times, "Review: Shaw’s ‘Heartbreak House’ Gets an Unexpected Visitor," 31 May 2017
The pianist seemed to my ears to be insightfully examining Beethoven’s process of grieving the loss of his hearing, the multifarious emotions flying forth.

— rob hubbard, Twin Cities, "Review: SPCO continues the adventure with latest exploration," 24 Mar. 2017
The only thing that has prevented Twitter’s stock from falling to single digits over the past few months has been the multifarious rumor of a possible acquisition.

— vanityfair.com, "After Trump, Will Twitter Wither?," 4 Jan. 2017
The only thing that has prevented Twitter’s stock from falling to single digits over the past few months has been the multifarious rumor of a possible acquisition.

— nick bilton, The Hive, "After Trump, Will Twitter Wither?," 4 Jan. 2017
Far beyond Syria, as well, many millions of people bear indelible memories of the conflict’s multifarious savageries, thanks to the numbing barrage of videos that have been posted on Facebook and Twitter and YouTube.

— jon lee anderson, The New Yorker, "All Roads Lead to Aleppo," 3 Jan. 2017

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

Was multifarious Used in Medieval Times?

Dictionary makers have dated the first appearance of "multifarious" in print as 1593 - and rightly so - but before that time another word similar in form and meaning was being used: multifary, meaning "in many ways" and appearing (and disappearing) in the 15th century. Before either of the English words existed, there was the Medieval Latin word multifarius (same meaning as "multifarious"), from Latin multifariam, meaning "in many places or "on many sides." "Multi-," as you may know, is a combining form meaning "many." A relative of "multifarious" in English is "omnifarious" ("of all varieties, forms, or kinds"), created with "omni-" ("all") rather than "multi-."

Origin and Etymology of multifarious

Medieval Latin multifarius, from Latin multifariam in many places

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1593

See Words from the same year

multifarious Synonyms

Synonyms

divers, manifold, myriad

Related Words

multiform, multiple, multiplex, multitudinous; heterogeneous, heterogenous, miscellaneous, mixed, sundry, various; different, diverse, unlike, varied

Near Antonyms

homogeneous, homogenous, monolithic, unmixed, unvaried; alike, identical, same; distinct, distinctive, individual, separate; alone, lone, only, sole, solitary; singular, unique

MULTIFARIOUS Defined for English Language Learners

multifarious

adjective

Definition of multifarious for English Language Learners

: of many and various kinds

Law Dictionary

multifarious

adjective mul·ti·far·i·ous \ ˌməl-ti-ˈfar-ē-əs \

legal Definition of multifarious

:having or occurring in great variety :diverse; also :uniting usually in an improper way distinct and independent matters, subjects, or causes

point one is multifarious, and we must break it down for analysis: a) the alleged reformation of the decree; and b) the order that appellant pay
—Spradley v. Hutchison, 787 S.W.2d 214 (1990)

— compare misjoinder

—