diverse
English · Français · Deutsch · Italiano · Thesaurus
AI In plain words
Writing a short explanation…
Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
diverse¹
- /daɪˈvɜːs/ UK
- /ˈdaɪ.vɜːs/ UK
- /daɪˈvɝs/ Canada, US
- /ˈdaɪ.vɝs/ Canada, US
- /dɪˈvɝs/ Canada, US
- /ˈdəˈvɝs/ Canada, US
- /dɑeˈvɜːs/ Australia
- /ˈdɪˈvɜːs/ Australia
Rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ)s
Where it comes from
PIE word
*dwóh₁
The adjective is derived from Middle English divers, diverse (“different, divergent”), from Anglo-Norman divers, Anglo-Norman divers, and Old French divers (“different; of various kinds”) (modern French divers), and directly from their etymon Latin dīversus (“different, diverse”), an adjective use of the perfect passive participle of dīvertō (“to divert, turn away”), from dī- (variant of dis- (prefix meaning ‘apart, in two’)) + vertō (“to turn”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wert- (“to rotate; to turn”)). Doublet of divert.
The adverb is derived from Middle English diverse (“differently; at various times”), from divers, diverse (adjective) (see above).
adjective more diverse · most diverse · diuers · divers
-
Consisting of different elements; various.
Similar: divers, manifold, catholic, dishomogeneous, diverse, diversified, eclectic, heterogeneous, liberal, miscellaneous, mixed, motley · Opposite: homogeneous, invariable, of a piece, onefold, samely, uniform, uniformal, unmixed, unvaried, unvarying
- Capable of or having various forms in different situations or at different times; multiform. [T]he diverse mone abowt, / Now bryght, now browne, now bent, now full, and now her lyght is owt.
- Chiefly preceded by a descriptive word: of a community, organization, etc.: composed of people with a variety of different demographic characteristics such as ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic status; especially, having a sizeable representation of people who are minorities in the community, organization, etc. The stage reflected the increasingly diverse Democratic party in which women and people of color are ascendant. Three women – two more than have ever shared a stage during a presidential primary debate and one of whom is Hindu – a Latino former congressman and a black senator participated.
- Of a person: belonging to a minority group. The Board's [i.e., Board of Governors'] goal is to commit to doubling the number of women and diverse members of the Academy by 2020.
-
Not the same; different, dissimilar, distinct.
And they gaue them drinke in veſſels of gold, (the veſſels being diuers one from another) and royall wine in abundance, according to the ſtate of the king.
Similar: different, differing, dissimilar, diverse, other, unalike, unlike
- Differing from what is good or right, or beneficial; bad, evil; harmful. This kyng Edward the .ii. father to the noble kyng Edward the .iii. had .ii. bretherñ⸝ the one called Marſhall⸝ who was ryght wyld ⁊ diuers of condicions⸝ the other called ſir Aymon erle of Cane right wyse⸝ amiable⸝ gẽtle [gentle] and wellbeloued with al people.
- Having different colours; mottled, variegated.
- Causing one to be indecisive between different viewpoints. So many pathes, ſo many turnings ſeene, / That vvhich of them to take, in diuerſe doubt they been.
adverb more diverse · most diverse
-
Synonym of diversely (“in different directions”).
[The river in the Garden of Eden] novv divided into four main Streams, / Runs divers, vvandring many a famous Realme / And Country vvhereof here needs no account, […]
Similar: diversely
diverse²
- /daɪˈvɜːs/ UK
- /ˈdaɪ.vɜːs/ UK
- /daɪˈvɝs/ Canada, US
- /ˈdaɪ.vɝs/ Canada, US
- /dɪˈvɝs/ Canada, US
- /ˈdəˈvɝs/ Canada, US
- /dɑeˈvɜːs/ Australia
- /ˈdɪˈvɜːs/ Australia
Rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ)s
Where it comes from
From Middle English diversen (“to differ, diverge; to become different, change; to vary; to change or vary (something); to make a distinction, distinguish; to divert”), from Anglo-Norman diverser, Middle French diverser, and Old French diverser (“to alter, change; to differ, diverge; to disagree”), from Late Latin diversare (“to differ”), and then either:
* a frequentative form of Latin dīvertere, the present active infinitive of dīvertō (see etymology 1); or
* from dī- (variant of dis- (prefix meaning ‘apart, in two’)) + versāre (the present active infinitive of versō (“to alter, change; to keep turning, whirl”), a frequentative form of vertō: see etymology 1).
Etymology 2 sense 1 (“synonym of diversify”) became obsolete in the 16th century, and was probably recoined in the 20th century.
verb diverses · diversing · diversed
- To make (something) different or varied in form or quality; to alter, to change, to vary. I Dyuerſe[,] I make difference⸝ Ie diuerſifie, prime coniu.
- To make the scope of (business, investments, etc.) different or varied, especially so as to balance and mitigate risks. The investors in the SPC [special purpose company] derive their return, and well as diversing their risk, from three factors.
- To go a different route or way from someone else; to diverge, to separate. Then each to other vvell affectionate, / Friendſhip profeſſed vvith vnfained hart, / The Redcroſſe knight diuerſt, but forth rode Britomart.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: various, divers, different, varied, variety, heterogeneous, eclectic, diversified, diversification, diversity, variable, assorted, miscellaneous, versatile, several, numerous
Translations
Every language
adj consisting of different elements — see also various
| Español | diverso |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 様々な samazama na |
| 中文 | 多種多樣的 /多种多样的 duōzhǒng duōyàng de, 多種的 /多种的 duōzhǒng de |
| हिन्दी | विविध vividh |
| Português | diverso |
| Français | divers |
| Deutsch | mannigfaltig, divers, abwechslungsreich |
| Italiano | vario, diverso, svariato |
| Русский | разнообра́зный raznoobráznyj, ра́зный ráznyj |
| العربية | مُتَنَوِّع mutanawwiʕ |
adj of a community, organization, etc.: composed of people with a variety of different demographic characteristics
| Español | diverso |
|---|---|
| हिन्दी | विविधतापूर्ण vividhtāpūrṇ |
| Português | diverso |
| Français | diversifié |
| Deutsch | vielfältig |
| Tiếng Việt | đa dạng |
adj not the same — see also different, dissimilar, distinct
| Español | diverso |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 다양하다 dayanghada |
| हिन्दी | भिन्न bhinn, विभिन्न vibhinn |
| Português | diverso, diferente, distinto |
| Français | différent |
| Deutsch | verschieden, unterschiedlich |
| Italiano | diverso |
| Русский | разли́чный razlíčnyj, друго́й drugój, отли́чный otlíčnyj |
| Tiếng Việt | khác nhau |
| עברית | מגוון meguvan |
Talk about this word "diverse." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/diverse. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. diverse. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/diverse "diverse." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/diverse.Cite this
@misc{diverse_2026,
title = {diverse},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/diverse},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
