sui generis
/ˌs(j)uː.aɪ ˈd͡ʒɛn.ə.ɹɪs/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.19 in modern English
11
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
In a class of its own; one of a kind.
adv
By itself; of its own.
Example Sentences
- "It is easy to describe second-rate talents, because they fall into a class and enlist under a standard; but first-rate powers defy calculation or comparison, and can be defined only by themselves. They are sui generis, and make the class to which they belong."
- "The transcendent case before us is absolutely sui generis."
- "The eminent Italian geologist, Stoppani, goes further than I had ventured to do, and treats the action of man as a new physical element altogether sui generis."
- "The system was neither free enterprise nor socialism; it was sui generis, one of the unique creations of the Middle Ages."
- "We see him as he sees himself, surveying the invisible depths of ethical space, with all the distinction of a specialist in the sui generis."
- "Based on Phoebe Gloeckner’s remarkable, sui generis semi-autobiographical graphic novel, […]"
Etymology
Regional Pronunciation
- British English: /ˌs(j)uː.aɪ ˈd͡ʒɛn.ə.ɹɪs/
Subject
Wiktionary places this term in Law.