vary
English meaning: Vary
Definition
Alteration; change.
Example
“Prices vary widely from one shop to another.”
Another example: “Try to vary your diet so you get a range of nutrients.”
Usage — When, Where & How
Chiefly a verb meaning to differ, change or be inconsistent ('prices vary', 'vary the routine'). The noun sense ('a vary') is archaic. Very common in scientific, statistical and everyday contexts; often paired with 'widely' or 'greatly'.
Etymology & Origin
English — Origin & History
From Latin variare 'to change', from varius 'diverse, spotted', dating to the 14th century.
Related Words
Common Collocations
- vary widely
- vary greatly
- vary considerably
- results vary
- prices vary
- vary from
Word Forms
vary (v); varied; varying; variation (n); various (adj)
Word Tools
Literary Heritage
“To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.”
/To thine own self be true/
“Be honest with yourself — and as naturally as night follows day, you will be unable to be false to others.”
“I'm nobody! Who are you? Are you nobody, too?”
/I'm nobody! Who are you?/
“I am nobody — and that quiet anonymity is more honest than the noise of public fame.”
Images
CC-licensed · free to useVideo
Language information
- Language
- English
- English
- Script
- Latin
- Family
- Indo-European
- Speakers
- 1.5B