particular
/pɑrˈtɪk.jə.lɚ/
Word Rarity
Common
Frequency: Zipf frequency 5.00 in modern English
14
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
4
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
Specialised; characteristic of a specific person or thing.
adj
Distinguished in some way; special (often in negative constructions).
adj
Of a person, concerned with, or attentive to, details; fastidious.
adj
Containing a part only; limited.
Example Sentences
- "I couldn't find the particular model you asked for, but I hope this one will do."
- "We knew it was named after John Smith, but nobody knows which particular John Smith."
- "I could a tale unfold whose lightest word / Would harrow up thy soul, freeze thy young blood, / Make thy two eyes, like stars, start from their spheres, / Thy knotted and combined locks to part / And each particular hair to stand on end"
- "I don't appreciate your particular brand of cynicism."
- "wheresoever one plant draweth such a particular juice out of the earth"
- "or these domesticke and particular broiles, Are not the question heere."
Etymology
From Middle English particuler, from Anglo-Norman particuler, Middle French particuler, particulier, from Late Latin particularis (“partial; separate, individual”), from Latin particula (“(small) part”). Equivalent to particle + -ar. Compare particle.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: *perh₃-, particuler, particularis, particula
- Suffix: particle
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /pɑrˈtɪk.jə.lɚ/
- British English: /pəˈtɪk.jʊ.lə/
Usage
Inflected Forms
more particular (comparative)
most particular (superlative)
non-comparable (also)
perticular (alternative, obsolete)
particulars (plural)