Definition of DISPARATE (original) (raw)
1
: markedly distinct in quality or character
2
: containing or made up of fundamentally different and often incongruous elements
Did you know?
If you enjoy sorting different objects into separate categories, you're well prepared to understand the origins of disparate. The word, which first appeared in English in the 16th century, comes from the Latin verb disparāre, meaning "to divide, separate off, make different." Disparāre, in turn, comes from parāre, a verb meaning "to supply, provide, make ready or prepare." Other descendants of parāre in English include both separate and prepare, as well as repair, apparatus, and even the pugnacious vituperate ("to criticize harshly and usually publicly").
Synonyms
Choose the Right Synonym for disparate
diverse implies both distinctness and marked contrast.
such diverse interests as dancing and football
divergent implies movement away from each other and unlikelihood of ultimate meeting or reconciliation.
went on to pursue divergent careers
disparate emphasizes incongruity or incompatibility.
disparate notions of freedom
various stresses the number of sorts or kinds.
Examples of disparate in a Sentence
First during the nineteen-seventies, but with increasing momentum during the eighties, a loose community of physics researchers had begun to postulate that the disparate small particles that we learned about in high-school science class—electrons, for instance—were actually the varied vibrations of tiny open and closed looped strings. —
Benjamin Wallace-Wells, New Yorker, 21 July 2008 The American border with Mexico is among the most economically disparate intersections in the world, but the cities on either side of the port looked almost identical—a spread of humble brick and cinder-block homes dotting a blanket of brown hills. —Cecilia Balli, Harper's, October 2006 I made the French lemon cream tart that Greenspan credits to Hermé and got disparate reactions. An American friend loved its creaminess and felt it had a comfortingly familiar texture; a British friend … said he missed the traditional sharp, gel-like custard. —Tamasin Day-Lewis, Saveur, November 2006 Like these imagined cities, identical twins are identical only in their blueprints. By the time they are born, they are already disparate in countless neurological and physiological ways that mostly we cannot see. —Frank J. Sulloway, New York Review, 30 Nov. 2006 The plan, as near as anybody outside Yahoo can make out, is to stitch all those disparate organizations into one huge Frankenstein's monster of a search engine that will strike terror into the hearts of all who behold it. —Lev Grossman, Time, 22 Dec. 2003
disparate notions among adults and adolescents about when middle age begins
Recent Examples on the Web Back in the design studios of such fitness giants as Reebok in Stoughton, Massachusetts; Nike in Beaverton, Oregon; and L.A. Gear in Los Angeles, designers take inspiration from such disparate sources as perfume bottles, hockey uniforms, mail-order catalogs, and, of course, fashion runways. —Arthur Elgort, Vogue, 21 June 2024 Amid disparate motives and seething grudges, mission creep set in and the coup evolved into an assassination. —Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 20 June 2024 After so many years of disparate efforts, the community is taking gradual steps to preserve its legacy and to more intentionally, incrementally grow in new directions. —Anna Washenko, Ars Technica, 20 June 2024 Before the onset of the summer, heat waves had already slammed disparate stretches of the planet, from Bangkok to Barranquilla. —Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 19 June 2024 See all Example Sentences for disparate 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'disparate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
borrowed from Latin disparātus "separate, distinct," from past participle of disparāre "to divide, separate off, make different," from dis- dis- + parāre "to supply, provide, make ready" (influenced in sense by association with dispar-, dispār "unequal, different") — more at pare
First Known Use
1566, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of disparate was in 1566
Dictionary Entries Near disparate
Cite this Entry
“Disparate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/disparate. Accessed 3 Jul. 2024.
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Last Updated: 25 Jun 2024 - Updated example sentences
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