Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
dictionary thesaurus

Thesaurus

individual

noun

Synonyms and Antonyms of individual

1 a member of the human race

  • every individual has value
Synonyms of individual

baby, being, bird, bod [British], body, character, cookie (or cooky), creature, customer, devil, duck, egg, face, fish, guy, head, human, human being, life, man, mortal, party, person, personage, scout, slob, sort, soul, specimen, stiff, thing, wight
Words Related to individual

hominid, homo, humanoid

brother, fellow, fellowman, neighbor

celebrity, personality, self, somebody
Phrases Synonymous with individual

son of man
Near Antonyms of individual

animal, beast, beastie, brute, critter

2 one that has a real and independent existence

  • our general concept of what constitutes a chair is based on our experience with many individuals that were called chairs
Synonyms of individual

being, commodity, entity, existent, individuality, integer, object, reality, something, substance, thing
Words Related to individual

body, subject

material, matter, quantity, stuff
Near Antonyms of individual

nonentity

individual

adjective

Synonyms and Antonyms of individual

1 of, relating to, or belonging to a single person

  • everyone has his or her own individual opinion about the subject, but you will have to work together
Synonyms of individual

idiomatic, individualized, particular, patented, peculiar, personal, personalized, private, privy, separate, singular, subjective, unique
Words Related to individual

characteristic, distinctive, intimate

identifying, idiosyncratic

especial, express, special, specific

independent, nonconformist, self-directed, self-sufficient

custom, customized, specialized
Near Antonyms of individual

broad, prevailing, prevalent, widespread

common, normal, regular, typical
Antonyms of individual

general, generic, popular, public, shared, universal

2 not the same or shared

  • guest rooms at the inn have individual bathrooms
Synonyms of individual

different, respective, separate
Words Related to individual

disparate, dissimilar, distinct, distinctive, distinguishable, divergent, diverse, unalike, varied, various
Near Antonyms of individual

identical, selfsame, very
Antonyms of individual

same

3 serving to identify as belonging to an individual or group

  • heʼs got a highly individual laugh that I would know anywhere
Synonyms of individual

characteristic, classic, diagnostic (also diagnostical), discriminating, distinct, distinctive, distinguishing, identifying, peculiar, proper, symptomatic, typical
Words Related to individual

idiosyncratic

identifiable, pronounced, unmistakable

general, generic

common, normal, regular, usual

especial, particular, special, specific

archetypal (also archetypical), model, paradigmatic
Antonyms of individual

atypical, nontypical, uncharacteristic, untypical

Synonym Discussion of individual

special, especial, specific, particular, individual mean of or relating to one thing or class. special stresses having a quality, character, identity, or use of its own.
    • special ingredients
especial may add implications of preeminence or preference.
    • a matter of especial importance
specific implies a quality or character distinguishing a kind or a species.
    • children with specific nutritional needs
particular stresses the distinctness of something as an individual.
    • a ballet step of particular difficulty
individual implies unequivocal reference to one of a class or group.
    • valued each individual opinion

Learn More about individual

  1. Dictionary: Definition of individual Spanish Central: Translation of individual Nglish: Translation of individual for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of individual for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about individual

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up individual? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show comments hide comments

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games