# richness

/ˈɹɪtʃnəs/ (US) · /ɹˈɪtʃnəs/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/richness
Updated: 2026-08-27

## Senses

### 1. wealth

noun · CEFR B2

the state of having a lot of money or valuable things.

For teachers: the state or quality of possessing great material wealth or resources.

- The richness of the family was obvious from their large house and expensive cars.
- Historians often debate whether the sudden richness of the merchant class led directly to the cultural shifts of the following century.

### 2. abundance and variety

noun · CEFR B2

having a large amount or a great variety of something useful or interesting.

For teachers: the state of having a profusion or wide variety of examples, cases, or resources.

- The richness of the library's collection makes it a great place for research.
- The sheer richness of detail in the witness's testimony convinced the jury that he was telling the truth.

### 3. biological variety

noun · CEFR C1 · Technical

the number of different types of plants and animals living in one area.

For teachers: the number of different species represented in an ecological community, landscape, or region.

- Scientists are worried that the richness of the rainforest is disappearing.
- Conservation efforts in the wetlands have successfully restored the species richness to levels not seen since the 1950s.

Usage: Often used in the specific phrase 'species richness'.

### 4. sensory depth

noun · CEFR B2

a quality of food, sound, or colour that is deep, strong, and pleasing.

For teachers: the quality of being pleasingly deep, vivid, or full in sensory characteristics such as flavour, colour, or sound.

- The richness of the chocolate cake made it hard to eat more than one piece.
- The singer's voice had a natural richness that filled the concert hall even without a microphone.

## Examples

- The richness of the soil helps the crops grow quickly.
- Ecologists measured the species richness of the rainforest to determine how many different types of birds lived in the canopy.
- The inherent richness of the coastal wetlands provides a critical buffer against erosion while supporting a vast network of migratory species that depend on the area's high nutrient levels.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.