heterogeneities
|het-er-o-ge-ne-i-ties|
/ˌhɛtərəˈdʒɛnɪti/
(heterogeneity)
diverse nature
Etymology
'heterogeneity' originates from Greek, specifically the word 'heterogeneia', where 'heteros' meant 'other' and 'genos' meant 'kind or race'.
'heterogeneity' passed into Late Latin/Medieval Latin as 'heterogeneitas' and then into English (17th century) as 'heterogeneity' with related adjectival form 'heterogeneous'.
Initially, it meant 'the condition of being of different origins or kinds'; over time it evolved into the broader modern sense of 'the state of not being uniform or consistent'.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
the state or quality of being composed of different or diverse elements; lack of uniformity or sameness.
The heterogeneities in the population made it difficult to draw broad conclusions from the survey.
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Noun 2
variations or irregularities within a material, sample, or system often noted in scientific, medical, or engineering contexts (e.g., structural or compositional differences).
Geologists study heterogeneities in the rock layers to understand past environmental changes.
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Last updated: 2025/12/10 15:39