Word
granular
Phoneticsgran·u·lar
US/ˈɡɹænjəɫɝ/
UK/ɡɹˈænjʊlɐ/
Definitions
01physical texture
adj. made of small grains or feeling like sand.
adj. consisting of, or resembling, granules or grains; having a grainy texture.
“The beach had granular sand that felt rough under my feet.”
“The geologist noted the granular composition of the sandstone, which indicated it had formed in a high-energy coastal environment.”
Usage
Usually placed before the noun it describes.
02highly detailed
adj. showing a lot of small details or breaking information into very small parts.
adj. characterised by a high level of detail or a fine scale of resolution in data or analysis.
“We need more granular data to understand why sales are falling in this city.”
“The new software allows for granular control over user permissions, enabling administrators to restrict access to individual files rather than entire folders.”
Academic · Technical
Usage
Commonly used in business, data science, and technical contexts to describe levels of detail.
Teaching tip
This is a very common 'buzzword' in modern professional English; students should use it when discussing data or project management.
Real-World Examples
“And if researchers could someday get access to even more granular data from individual skirmishes, military decisions and political negotiations, more could be learned about the evolution of war.” “The thinking was that app permissions are so granular that malware lurking on the device would have no ability to access the private keys that form the lynchpin of passkey security.” Etymology
From Late Latin grānulum (“granule, little grain”), diminutive of Latin grānum (“grain, seed”), + -ar. By surface analysis, granule + -ar. Compare French granulaire.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/granular