variable
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
adj.changing often or likely to change.
adj.subject to variation or changes; not remaining constant in quality, degree, or type.
Simple“The weather in the mountains is very variable, so you should bring a jacket.”
In context“The quality of the local produce remains highly variable depending on the seasonal rainfall and the specific farming techniques employed.”
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.a factor or condition that can change and affect the result of something.
n.an element, feature, or factor that is liable to vary or change, especially within a scientific experiment.
Simple“Temperature is a key variable that affects how fast the plants grow.”
In context“The researchers attempted to control every possible variable, yet the final results still showed significant discrepancies between the two test groups.”
- 03 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.a symbol or name that represents a value that can change.
n.a quantity that may assume any one of a set of values; in programming, a named memory location for storing data.
Simple“In this equation, 'x' is the variable we need to solve for.”
In context“The developer declared a global variable to track the user's score across different levels of the application.”
Synonyms - 04 C2 Proficiency
n.a star whose brightness changes over time.
n.a star whose luminosity changes, either irregularly or somewhat regularly.
Simple“The astronomer spent months tracking the brightness of the variable.”
In context“Observations of this particular variable suggest that its pulsation period is shortening as it enters a new stage of stellar evolution.”
Synonymsvariable star - 05 C2 Proficiency
n.winds that change direction often, or areas of the sea where this happens.
n.a shifting wind or one that varies in force; in the plural, regions of the sea where steady winds are absent.
Simple“The ship struggled to make progress while stuck in the variables.”
In context“The captain noted that the light variables were making navigation difficult, as the sails could not catch a consistent breeze.”
Synonymsshifting windAntonymstrade wind
Usage additional variable · external variable · highly variable
“Using data from prior research on actual ant colonies, the scientists weighed variables such as the density of ants, ant movement speed and sensing distance between nestmates.”
“Although telescopes on Earth and in space have revealed extraordinary details about 3I/ATLAS, there are still unknown variables that would provide even more information about the place it came from.”
Borrowed into Middle English in the 14th century from Old French variable, from Latin variare (“to change”), from varius (“different, various”). Equates to English vary + -able.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.