English Dictionary

INDIVIDUAL

Pronunciation (US): Play  (GB): Play

IPA (US): 

 Dictionary entry overview: What does individual mean? 

INDIVIDUAL (noun)
  The noun INDIVIDUAL has 2 senses:

1. a human beingplay

2. a single organismplay

  Familiarity information: INDIVIDUAL used as a noun is rare.


INDIVIDUAL (adjective)
  The adjective INDIVIDUAL has 4 senses:

1. being or characteristic of a single thing or personplay

2. separate and distinct from others of the same kindplay

3. characteristic of or meant for a single person or thingplay

4. concerning one person exclusivelyplay

  Familiarity information: INDIVIDUAL used as an adjective is uncommon.


 Dictionary entry details 


INDIVIDUAL (noun)


Sense 1

Meaning:

A human being

Classified under:

Nouns with no superordinates

Synonyms:

individual; mortal; person; somebody; someone; soul

Context example:

there was too much for one person to do

Hypernyms ("individual" is a kind of...):

being; organism (a living thing that has (or can develop) the ability to act or function independently)

causal agency; causal agent; cause (any entity that produces an effect or is responsible for events or results)

Meronyms (parts of "individual"):

personality (the complex of all the attributes--behavioral, temperamental, emotional and mental--that characterize a unique individual)

anatomy; bod; build; chassis; figure; flesh; form; frame; human body; material body; physical body; physique; shape; soma (alternative names for the body of a human being)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "individual"):

self (a person considered as a unique individual)

adult; grownup (a fully developed person from maturity onward)

adventurer; venturer (a person who enjoys taking risks)

anomaly; unusual person (a person who is unusual)

anachronism (a person who seems to be displaced in time; who belongs to another age)

applicant; applier (a person who requests or seeks something such as assistance or employment or admission)

appointee; appointment (a person who is appointed to a job or position)

capitalist (a person who invests capital in a business (especially a large business))

captor; capturer (a person who captures and holds people or animals)

changer; modifier (a person who changes something)

color-blind person (a person unable to distinguish differences in hue)

common man; common person; commoner (a person who holds no title)

communicator (a person who communicates with others)

contestant (a person who participates in competitions)

coward (a person who shows fear or timidity)

creator (a person who grows or makes or invents things)

controversialist; disputant; eristic (a person who disputes; who is good at or enjoys controversy)

applied scientist; engineer; technologist (a person who uses scientific knowledge to solve practical problems)

entertainer (a person who tries to please or amuse)

experimenter (a person who enjoys testing innovative ideas)

expert (a person with special knowledge or ability who performs skillfully)

face (a part of a person that is used to refer to a person)

female; female person (a person who belongs to the sex that can have babies)

gipsy; gypsy (a person who resembles a Gypsy in leading an unconventional, nomadic way of life)

individualist (a person who pursues independent thought or action)

denizen; dweller; habitant; indweller; inhabitant (a person who inhabits a particular place)

aboriginal; aborigine; indigen; indigene; native (an indigenous person who was born in a particular place)

native (a person born in a particular place or country)

inexperienced person; innocent (a person who lacks knowledge of evil)

intellect; intellectual (a person who uses the mind creatively)

juvenile; juvenile person (a young person, not fully developed)

lover (a person who loves someone or is loved by someone)

loved one (a person who you love, usually a member of your family)

leader (a person who rules or guides or inspires others)

male; male person (a person who belongs to the sex that cannot have babies)

money dealer; money handler (a person who receives or invests or pays out money)

national; subject (a person who owes allegiance to that nation)

nonreligious person (a person who does not manifest devotion to a deity)

nonworker (a person who does nothing)

compeer; equal; match; peer (a person who is of equal standing with another in a group)

beholder; observer; perceiver; percipient (a person who becomes aware (of things or events) through the senses)

percher (a person situated on a perch)

forerunner; precursor (a person who goes before or announces the coming of another)

primitive; primitive person (a person who belongs to an early stage of civilization)

religious person (a person who manifests devotion to a deity)

sensualist (a person who enjoys sensuality)

traveler; traveller (a person who changes location)

unfortunate; unfortunate person (a person who suffers misfortune)

persona non grata; unwelcome person (a person who for some reason is not wanted or welcome)

unskilled person (a person who lacks technical training)

worker (a person who works at a specific occupation)

African (a native or inhabitant of Africa)

person of color; person of colour ((formal) any non-European non-white person)

African-American; Black; Negro; Negroid (a person with African ancestry,)

Caucasian; White; White person (a Caucasian)

Amerindian; Native American (any member of the peoples living in North or South America before the Europeans arrived)

Slav (any member of the people of eastern Europe or Asian Russia who speak a Slavonic language)

gentile (a person who is not a member of one's own religion; used in this sense by Mormons and Hindus)

Hebrew; Israelite; Jew (a person belonging to the worldwide group claiming descent from Jacob (or converted to it) and connected by cultural or religious ties)

Aries; Ram ((astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Aries)

Bull; Taurus ((astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Taurus)

Gemini; Twin ((astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Gemini)

Cancer; Crab ((astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Cancer)

Leo; Lion ((astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Leo)

Virgin; Virgo ((astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Virgo)

Balance; Libra ((astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Libra)

Scorpio; Scorpion ((astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Scorpio)

Archer; Sagittarius ((astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Sagittarius)

Capricorn; Goat ((astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Capricorn)

Aquarius; Water Bearer ((astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Aquarius)

Fish; Pisces ((astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Pisces)

abator (a person who abates a nuisance)

abjurer (a person who abjures)

abomination (a person who is loathsome or disgusting)

abstainer; abstinent; nondrinker (a person who refrains from drinking intoxicating beverages)

achiever; succeeder; success; winner (a person with a record of successes)

acquaintance; friend (a person with whom you are acquainted)

acquirer (a person who acquires something (usually permanently))

active (a person who is a participating member of an organization)

actor; doer; worker (a person who acts and gets things done)

adjudicator (a person who studies and settles conflicts and disputes)

admirer (a person who admires; someone who esteems or respects or approves)

adoptee (someone (such as a child) who has been adopted)

adversary; antagonist; opponent; opposer; resister (someone who offers opposition)

advisee (someone who receives advice)

advocate; advocator; exponent; proponent (a person who pleads for a cause or propounds an idea)

affiant (a person who makes an affidavit)

agnostic; doubter (someone who is doubtful or noncommittal about something)

albino (a person with congenital albinism: white hair and milky skin; eyes are usually pink)

amateur (someone who pursues a study or sport as a pastime)

ancient (a person who lived in ancient times)

anti (a person who is opposed (to an action or policy or practice etc.))

anti-American (a person who is opposed to the United States and its policies)

apprehender (a person who seizes or arrests (especially a person who seizes or arrests in the name of justice))

appreciator (a person who is fully aware of something and understands it)

archaist (a person who archaizes)

arrogator (a person who through conceit makes pretentious claims to rights or advantages that he or she is not entitled to or to qualities that he or she does not possess)

assessee (a person (or property) that is assessed)

asthmatic (a person suffering from asthma)

authority ((usually plural) persons who exercise (administrative) control over others)

autodidact (a person who has taught himself)

automaton; zombi; zombie (someone who acts or responds in a mechanical or apathetic way)

baby boomer; boomer (a member of the baby boom generation in the 1950s)

baby buster; buster (a person born in the generation following the baby boom when the birth rate fell dramatically)

bad guy (any person who is not on your side)

bad person (a person who does harm to others)

baldhead; baldpate; baldy; skin; skinhead (a person whose head is bald or shaved)

balker; baulker; noncompliant (a person who refuses to comply)

bullfighter; toreador (someone who fights bulls)

bather (a person who takes a bath)

beard (a person who diverts suspicion from someone (especially a woman who accompanies a male homosexual in order to conceal his homosexuality))

bedfellow (a person with whom you share a bed)

bereaved; bereaved person (a person who has suffered the death of someone they loved)

best; topper (the person who is most outstanding or excellent; someone who tops all others)

birth (a baby born; an offspring)

biter (someone who bites)

blogger (a person who keeps and updates a blog)

blond; blonde (a person with fair skin and hair)

bluecoat (a person dressed all in blue (as a soldier or sailor))

bodybuilder; muscle-builder; muscle builder; musclebuilder; muscleman (someone who does special exercises to develop a brawny musculature)

bomber (a person who plants bombs)

brunet; brunette (a person with dark (brown) hair)

buster (a person (or thing) that breaks up or overpowers something)

candidate; prospect (someone who is considered for something (for an office or prize or honor etc.))

case (a person requiring professional services)

cashier (a person responsible for receiving payments for goods and services (as in a shop or restaurant))

celebrant; celebrater; celebrator (a person who is celebrating)

censor (someone who censures or condemns)

chameleon (a changeable or inconstant person)

beguiler; charmer (a person who charms others (usually by personal attractiveness))

baby; child (an immature childish person)

chutzpanik ((Yiddish) a person characterized by chutzpa)

closer (a person who closes something)

clumsy person (a person with poor motor coordination)

aggregator; collector (a person who collects things)

battler; belligerent; combatant; fighter; scrapper (someone who fights (or is fighting))

complexifier (someone makes things complex)

compulsive (a person with a compulsive disposition; someone who feels compelled to do certain things)

computer user (a person who uses computers for work or entertainment or communication or business)

contemplative (a person devoted to the contemplative life)

convert (a person who has been converted to another religious or political belief)

ape; aper; copycat; emulator; imitator (someone who copies the words or behavior of another)

counter (a person who counts things)

counterterrorist (someone who attempts to prevent terrorism)

crawler; creeper (a person who crawls or creeps along the ground)

creature; wight (a human being; 'wight' is an archaic term)

creditor (a person to whom money is owed by a debtor; someone to whom an obligation exists)

cripple (someone who is unable to walk normally because of an injury or disability to the legs or back)

dancer; social dancer (a person who participates in a social gathering arranged for dancing (as a ball))

dead person; dead soul; deceased; deceased person; decedent; departed (someone who is no longer alive)

deaf person (a person with a severe auditory impairment)

debaser; degrader (a person who lowers the quality or character or value (as by adding cheaper metal to coins))

debitor; debtor (a person who owes a creditor; someone who has the obligation of paying a debt)

defecator; shitter; voider (a person who defecates)

delayer (a person who delays; to put off until later or cause to be late)

deliverer (a person who gives up or transfers money or goods)

demander (a person who makes demands)

dieter (a person who diets)

differentiator; discriminator (a person who (or that which) differentiates)

disentangler; unraveler; unraveller (a person who removes tangles; someone who takes something out of a tangled state)

contestant; dissenter; dissident; objector; protester (a person who dissents from some established policy)

divider (a person who separates something into parts or groups)

domestic partner; significant other; spousal equivalent; spouse equivalent (a person (not necessarily a spouse) with whom you cohabit and share a long-term sexual relationship)

double; image; look-alike (someone who closely resembles a famous person (especially an actor))

dresser (a person who dresses in a particular way)

dribbler; driveller; drooler; slobberer (a person who dribbles)

drug user; substance abuser; user (a person who takes drugs)

dyslectic; dyslexic (a person who has dyslexia)

eccentric; eccentric person; flake; geek; oddball (a person with an unusual or odd personality)

ectomorph (a person with a thin body)

effecter; effector (one who brings about a result or event; one who accomplishes a purpose)

Elizabethan (a person who lived during the reign of Elizabeth I)

emotional person (a person subject to strong states of emotion)

endomorph (a heavy person with a soft and rounded body)

enjoyer (a person who delights in having or using or experiencing something)

enrollee (a person who enrolls in (or is enrolled in) a class or course of study)

ethnic (a person who is a member of an ethnic group)

adventurer; explorer (someone who travels into little known regions (especially for some scientific purpose))

extravert; extrovert ((psychology) a person concerned more with practical realities than with inner thoughts and feelings)

faddist (a person who subscribes to a variety of fads)

faller (a person who falls)

fastener (a person who fastens or makes fast)

fiduciary (a person who holds assets in trust for a beneficiary)

first-rater (one who is first-rate)

follower (a person who accepts the leadership of another)

free agent; free spirit; freewheeler (someone acting freely or even irresponsibly)

friend (a person you know well and regard with affection and trust)

fleer; fugitive; runaway (someone who flees from an uncongenial situation)

gainer (a person who gains (gains an advantage or gains profits))

gainer; weight gainer (a person who gains weight)

gambler (a person who wagers money on the outcome of games or sporting events)

gatekeeper (someone who controls access to something)

gatherer (a person who gathers)

good guy (any person who is on your side)

good person (a person who is good to other people)

granter (a person who grants or gives something)

greeter; saluter; welcomer (a person who greets)

grinner (a person who grins)

groaner (a person who groans)

grunter (a person who grunts)

guesser (a person who guesses)

handicapped person (a person who has some condition that markedly restricts their ability to function physically or mentally or socially)

hater (a person who hates)

heterosexual; heterosexual person; straight; straight person (a person having a sexual orientation to persons of the opposite sex)

gay; homo; homophile; homosexual (someone who is sexually attracted to persons of the same sex)

homunculus (a tiny fully formed individual that (according to the discredited theory of preformation) is supposed to be present in the sperm cell)

hope (someone (or something) on which expectations are centered)

hoper (a person who hopes)

huddler (a person who crouches)

hugger (a person who hugs)

immune (a person who is immune to a particular infection)

insured; insured person (a person whose interests are protected by an insurance policy; a person who contracts for an insurance policy that indemnifies him against loss of property or life or health etc.)

interpreter (someone who uses art to represent something)

introvert ((psychology) a person who tends to shrink from social contacts and to become preoccupied with their own thoughts)

Jat (a member of an Indo-European people widely scattered throughout the northwest of the Indian subcontinent and consisting of Muslims and Hindus and Sikhs)

gem; jewel (a person who is as brilliant and precious as a piece of jewelry)

jumper (a person who jumps)

junior (the younger of two persons)

killer; slayer (someone who causes the death of a person or animal)

relation; relative (a person related by blood or marriage)

kink (a person with unusual sexual tastes)

kneeler (a person in a kneeling position)

knocker (a person who knocks (as seeking to gain admittance))

apprehender; knower (a person who knows or apprehends)

kook; odd fellow; odd fish; odd man out; queer bird; queer duck (someone regarded as eccentric or crazy and standing out from a group)

large person (a person of greater than average size)

Latin (a person who is a member of those peoples whose languages derived from Latin)

laugher (a person who is laughing or who laughs easily)

assimilator; learner; scholar (someone (especially a child) who learns (as from a teacher) or takes up knowledge or beliefs)

left-hander; lefty; southpaw (a person who uses the left hand with greater skill than the right)

life (a living person)

lightning rod (someone who is a frequent target of negative reactions and serves to distract attention from another)

linguist; polyglot (a person who speaks more than one language)

literate; literate person (a person who can read and write)

liver (a person who has a special life style)

longer; thirster; yearner (a person with a strong desire for something)

loose cannon (a person who is expected to perform a particular task but who is out of control and dangerous)

machine (an efficient person)

mailer (a person who mails something)

malcontent (a person who is discontented or disgusted)

man (the generic use of the word to refer to any human being)

manipulator (a person who handles things manually)

man jack (a single individual)

married (a person who is married)

masturbator; onanist (a person who practices masturbation)

measurer (a person who makes measurements)

nonmember (a person who is not a member)

mesomorph (a person with a well-developed muscular body)

mestizo (a person of mixed racial ancestry (especially mixed European and Native American ancestry))

middlebrow (someone who is neither a highbrow nor a lowbrow)

miracle man; miracle worker (a person who claims or is alleged to perform miracles)

misfit (someone unable to adapt to their circumstances)

misogamist (a person who hates marriage)

mixed-blood (a person whose ancestors belonged to two or more racial groups)

modern (a contemporary person)

monolingual (a person who knows only one language)

mother hen (a person who cares for the needs of others (especially in an overprotective or interfering way))

mouse (person who is quiet or timid)

maimer; mangler; mutilator (a person who mutilates or destroys or disfigures or cripples)

namer (a person who gives a name or names)

namesake (a person with the same name as another)

neglecter (a person who is neglectful and gives little attention or respect to people or responsibilities)

neighbor; neighbour (a person who lives (or is located) near another)

neutral (one who does not side with any party in a war or dispute)

nondescript (a person is not easily classified and not very interesting)

nonparticipant (a person who does not participate)

nonpartisan; nonpartizan (a person who is nonpartisan)

nonperson; unperson (a person regarded as nonexistent and having no rights; a person whose existence is systematically ignored (especially for ideological or political reasons))

nonresident (someone who does not live in a particular place)

nonsmoker (a person who does not smoke tobacco)

nude; nude person (a naked person)

nurser (a person who treats something carefully)

occultist (a believer in occultism; someone versed in the occult arts)

optimist (a person disposed to take a favorable view of things)

orphan (someone or something who lacks support or care or supervision)

ostrich (a person who refuses to face reality or recognize the truth (a reference to the popular notion that the ostrich hides from danger by burying its head in the sand))

ejector; ouster (a person who ousts or supplants someone else)

outcaste (a person belonging to no caste)

outdoorsman (a person who spends time outdoors (e.g., hunting or fishing))

owner; possessor (a person who owns something)

coddler; mollycoddler; pamperer; spoiler (someone who pampers or spoils by excessive indulgence)

pansexual (a person who participates in (or is open to) sexual activities of many kinds)

excuser; forgiver; pardoner (a person who pardons or forgives or excuses a fault or offense)

partner (a person who is a member of a partnership)

party (a person involved in legal proceedings)

passer (a person who passes as a member of a different ethnic or racial group)

personage (another word for person; a person not meriting identification)

personification (a person who represents an abstract quality)

perspirer; sweater (a person who perspires)

philosopher (a wise person who is calm and rational; someone who lives a life of reason with equanimity)

chooser; picker; selector (a person who chooses or selects out)

pisser; urinator (a person who urinates)

contriver; deviser; planner (a person who makes plans)

player (a person who pursues a number of different social and sexual partners simultaneously)

posturer (someone who behaves in a manner calculated to impress or mislead others)

powderer (someone who applies or scatters powder)

preserver (someone who keeps safe from harm or danger)

propositus (the person immediately affected by or concerned with an action)

public relations person (a person employed to establish and promote a favorable relationship with the public)

pursuer (a person who pursues some plan or goal)

pussycat (a person who is regarded as easygoing and agreeable)

quarter (an unspecified person)

quitter (a person who gives up too easily)

radical (a person who has radical ideas or opinions)

rara avis; rare bird (a rare or unique person)

realist (a person who accepts the world as it literally is and deals with it accordingly)

rectifier (a person who corrects or sets right)

carrottop; red-header; redhead; redheader (someone who has red hair)

registrant (a person who is formally entered (along with others) in a register (and who obtains certain rights thereby))

allayer; comforter; reliever (a person who reduces the intensity (e.g., of fears) and calms and pacifies)

repeater (a person who repeats)

recoverer; rescuer; saver (someone who saves something from danger or violence)

rester (a person who rests)

controller; restrainer (a person who directs and restrains)

revenant (a person who returns after a lengthy absence)

have; rich person; wealthy person (a person who possesses great material wealth)

right-hander; right hander; righthander (a person who uses the right hand more skillfully than the left)

riser (a person who rises (especially from bed))

romper (a person who romps or frolics)

roundhead (a brachycephalic person)

ruler; swayer (a person who rules or commands)

rusher (a person who rushes; someone in a hurry; someone who acts precipitously)

scientist (a person with advanced knowledge of one or more sciences)

scratcher (a person who scratches to relieve an itch)

mediocrity; second-rater (a person of second-rate ability or value)

cloud seeder; seeder (a person who seeds clouds)

quester; searcher; seeker (someone making a search or inquiry)

segregate (someone who is or has been segregated)

romanticist; sentimentalist (someone who indulges in excessive sentimentality)

sex object (any person regarded simply as an object of sexual gratification)

sex symbol (a person (especially a celebrity) who is well-known for their sexual attractiveness)

mover and shaker; shaker (a person who wields power and influence)

showman (a person skilled at making effective presentations)

signatory; signer (someone who signs and is bound by a document)

simple; simpleton (a person lacking intelligence or common sense)

six-footer (a person who is at least six feet tall)

skidder; slider; slipper (a person who slips or slides because of loss of traction)

slave (a person who is owned by someone)

slave (someone entirely dominated by some influence or person)

sleepyhead (a sleepy person)

sloucher (a person who slouches; someone with a drooping carriage)

small person (a person of below average size)

smasher (a person who smashes something)

smiler (a person who smiles)

sneezer (a person who sneezes)

sniffer (a person who sniffs)

sniffler; sniveler (a person who breathes audibly through a congested nose)

snuffer (a person who snuffs out candles)

snuffler (a person who breathes noisily (as through a nose blocked by mucus))

socialiser; socializer (a person who takes part in social activities)

sort (a person of a particular character or nature)

sounding board (a person whose reactions to something serve as an indication of its acceptability)

sphinx (an inscrutable person who keeps his thoughts and intentions secret)

expectorator; spitter (a person who spits (ejects saliva or phlegm from the mouth))

sport (a person known for the way she (or he) behaves when teased or defeated or subjected to trying circumstances)

sprawler (a person who sprawls)

spurner (a person who rejects (someone or something) with contempt)

squint-eye; squinter (a person with strabismus)

smotherer; stifler (a person who stifles or smothers or suppresses)

stigmatic; stigmatist (a person whose body is marked by religious stigmata (such as marks resembling the wounds of the crucified Christ))

stooper (a person who carries himself or herself with the head and shoulders habitually bent forward)

stranger (an individual that one is not acquainted with)

struggler (a person who struggles with difficulties or with great effort)

case; guinea pig; subject (a person who is subjected to experimental or other observational procedures; someone who is an object of investigation)

supernumerary (a person serving no apparent function)

surrenderer; yielder (a person who yields or surrenders)

survivalist (someone who tries to insure their personal survival or the survival of their group or nation)

survivor (one who outlives another)

suspect (someone who is under suspicion)

tagger (someone who appends or joins one thing to another)

tagger (someone who assigns labels to the grammatical constituents of textual matter)

tapper (a person who strikes a surface lightly and usually repeatedly)

tempter (a person who tempts others)

termer (a person who serves a specified term)

scourge; terror; threat (a person who inspires fear or dread)

testate; testator (a person who makes a will)

scrag; skin and bones; thin person (a person who is unusually thin and scrawny)

third-rater (one who is third-rate or distinctly inferior)

thrower (someone who projects something (especially by a rapid motion of the arm))

tiger (a fierce or audacious person)

totemist (a person who belongs to a clan or tribe having a totem)

toucher (a person who causes or allows a part of the body to come in contact with someone or something)

transfer; transferee (someone who transfers or is transferred from one position to another)

transexual; transsexual (a person whose sexual identification is entirely with the opposite sex)

transexual; transgendered; transsexual (a person who has undergone a sex change operation)

cross-dresser; transvestite (someone who adopts the dress or manner or sexual role of the opposite sex)

attempter; essayer; trier (one who tries)

turner (one of two persons who swing ropes for jumpers to skip over in the game of jump rope)

tyrant (any person who exercises power in a cruel way)

ugly duckling (an ugly or unpromising child who grows into a beautiful or worthy person)

opener; undoer; unfastener; untier (a person who unfastens or unwraps or opens)

user (a person who makes use of a thing; someone who uses or employs something)

vanisher (a person who disappears)

dupe; victim (a person who is tricked or swindled)

Victorian (a person who lived during the reign of Victoria)

visionary (a person given to fanciful speculations and enthusiasms with little regard for what is actually possible)

visually impaired person (someone who has inferior vision)

waiter (a person who waits or awaits)

waker (a person who awakes)

walk-in (person who walks in without having an appointment)

needer; wanter (a person who wants or needs something)

ward (a person who is under the protection or in the custody of another)

warrior (someone engaged in or experienced in warfare)

watcher (a person who keeps a devotional vigil by a sick bed or by a dead body)

doormat; weakling; wuss (a person who is physically weak and ineffectual)

weasel (a person who is regarded as treacherous or sneaky)

squirmer; wiggler; wriggler (one who can't stay still (especially a child))

winker (a person who winks)

withholder (a person who refrains from granting)

witness ((law) a person who testifies under oath in a court of law)

worldling (a person absorbed by the concerns and interests and pleasures of the present world)

yawner (a person who yawns)

Holonyms ("individual" is a member of...):

people ((plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively)

Derivation:

individualize (make personal or more personal)


Sense 2

Meaning:

A single organism

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("individual" is a kind of...):

being; organism (a living thing that has (or can develop) the ability to act or function independently)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "individual"):

head (an individual person)

Derivation:

individualize (make or mark or treat as individual)


INDIVIDUAL (adjective)


Sense 1

Meaning:

Being or characteristic of a single thing or person

Synonyms:

individual; single

Context example:

they went their individual ways

Similar:

idiosyncratic (peculiar to the individual)

individualist; individualistic (marked by or expressing individuality)

man-to-man; one-on-one (being a system of play in which an individual defensive player guards an individual offensive player)

respective; several; various (considered individually)

singular (being a single and separate person or thing)

Also:

separate (independent; not united or joint)

Attribute:

individualism; individuality; individuation (the quality of being individual)

Antonym:

common (belonging to or participated in by a community as a whole; public)

Derivation:

individuality (the quality of being individual)


Sense 2

Meaning:

Separate and distinct from others of the same kind

Synonyms:

case-by-case; individual; item-by-item

Context example:

on a case-by-case basis

Similar:

independent (free from external control and constraint)


Sense 3

Meaning:

Characteristic of or meant for a single person or thing

Synonyms:

individual; single

Context example:

a single bed

Similar:

unshared (not shared)


Sense 4

Meaning:

Concerning one person exclusively

Synonyms:

individual; private

Context example:

each room has a private bath

Similar:

personal (concerning or affecting a particular person or his or her private life and personality)


 Context examples 


A question about whether an individual's ability to swallow limits or has limited their daily activities.

(Ability to Swallow Limits Daily Activities, NCI Thesaurus)

A zebrafish line established from a group of 25 crosses between individual AB and Tubingen fish.

(AB/Tubingen Zebrafish, NCI Thesaurus)

A rare genetic syndrome which occurs primarily among individuals of Norwegian descent with an autosomal recessive pattern of inheritance.

(Aagenaes Syndrome, NCI Thesaurus)

A response indicating that an individual is or has experienced something and that they are a little concerned.

(A Little Concerned, NCI Thesaurus)

A question about whether an individual is or was able to communicate with others.

(Able to Communicate with Others, NCI Thesaurus)

A question about whether an individual is or was able to concentrate.

(Able to Concentrate, NCI Thesaurus)

A question about whether an individual is or was able to eat solid food.

(Able to Eat Solid Food, NCI Thesaurus)

A question about whether an individual is or was able to eat the foods they like.

(Able to Eat Liked Food, NCI Thesaurus)

A question about whether an individual is or was able to eat as much food as they want.

(Able to Eat as Much Food as Desired, NCI Thesaurus)

A question about whether an individual is or was able to drive a vehicle.

(Able to Drive a Vehicle, NCI Thesaurus)



 Learn English with... Proverbs 
"Even a broken clock is right twice a day." (English proverb)

"Good fences make good neighbors." (Robert Frost)

"Fortune seldom repeats; troubles never occur alone." (Chinese proverb)

"Being able to feel it on wooden shoes." (Dutch proverb)



ALSO IN ENGLISH DICTIONARY:


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