uniformity
UK /ˌjuːnɪˈfɔːmɪti/ · US /ˌjunɪˈfɔɹməti/ noun
Forms uniformities
- noun (uncountable) The quality or state of having the same characteristics or form as other things, and lacking variety; (countable) an instance of this.
- noun (uncountable) Often followed by of: the quality or state of a thing always having the same characteristics or form; consistency or regularity in appearance or operation. “The uniformity of the decor”
- noun (uncountable) Often followed by of: especially of one's life: lack of variety; tedious sameness; monotony.
- noun (uncountable, geology) The condition or state described by uniformitarianism (“the scientific principle that natural laws and processes operated in the past in the same way and at the same rates that they operate today, and sometimes in the same way everywhere in the universe as well”).
- noun (uncountable, especially religion) Adherence to or conformity with one viewpoint, set of observances, etc.
Synonyms
sameness conformity homogeneousness homogeneity regularity uniformness
Antonyms
disuniformity nonuniformity unevenness variation variegation variety
Etymology
From Late Middle English uniformite, uniformitie (“conformity or equality among several parts; similar degree”), borrowed from Old French uniformité (“uniformity”) (modern French uniformité), or from its etymon Late Latin ūniformitās, from Latin ūnifōrmis (“having only one form or shape, uniform”) + -itās (a variant of -tās (suffix forming feminine abstract nouns indicating a state of being)). Ūnifōrmis is derived from ūni- (prefix meaning ‘one’) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁óynos (“one”)) + -fōrmis (suffix meaning having the form of) (from fōrma (“appearance, form, shape”); further etymology unknown). By surface analysis, uniform + -ity.
Webster’s 1913
- noun The quality or state of being uniform; freedom from variation or difference; resemblance to itself at all times; sameness of action, effect, etc., under like conditions; even tenor; as, the uniformity of design in a poem; the uniformity of nature.
- noun Consistency; sameness; as, the uniformity of a man's opinions.
Etymology [L. uniformitas: cf. F. uniformité.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “uniformity”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details