What does "variety" mean?

1. (a range of different things) a lot of different things of the same general type. 2. (the quality of being different) the quality of being different or having many parts, which makes something interesting. 3. (a specific type) a specific type of a plant, animal, or thing. 4. (entertainment show) a type of entertainment with many different acts, like singing, dancing, and magic.

How do you use "variety"?

When 'a variety of' is the subject, the verb is usually plural because the focus is on the many items. Often functions as an uncountable noun in this sense.

Is it correct to say "There are a variety of reason for this."?

No — say "There are a variety of reasons for this.". The phrase 'a variety of' must be followed by a plural noun.

variety

US //vɝˈaɪəti// UK //vəɹˈaɪəti// va·ri·ety

1 a range of different things (n.)
A2 Elementary

a lot of different things of the same general type.

a collection or number of different things within a particular category. Often used with the preposition 'of'.

Example

The shop sells a wide variety of fresh bread every morning.

Example

The university offers a variety of extracurricular activities, ranging from competitive sports to niche academic societies.

Usage

When 'a variety of' is the subject, the verb is usually plural because the focus is on the many items.
- uniformity
- sameness
Pitfall

There are a variety of reason for this.

There are a variety of reasons for this.

The phrase 'a variety of' must be followed by a plural noun.
2 the quality of being different (n.)
B1 Intermediate

the quality of being different or having many parts, which makes something interesting.

the quality or state of being varied or diverse; the absence of monotony.

Example

I like my job because there is a lot of variety in my daily tasks.

Example

The composer introduced rhythmic variety into the second movement to prevent the repetitive melody from becoming tedious.

Usage

Often functions as an uncountable noun in this sense.
- monotony
- routine

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3 a specific type (n.)
B2 Upper Intermediate Technical Science

a specific type of a plant, animal, or thing.

a specific sort, kind, or type; in biology, a taxonomic rank below species.

Example

This specific variety of tomato grows very well in cold weather.

Example

Botanists identified a rare variety of orchid that only blooms during the peak of the rainy season.
4 entertainment show (n.)
B2 Upper Intermediate General-service Theatre

a type of entertainment with many different acts, like singing, dancing, and magic.

a genre of entertainment consisting of a series of unrelated performances, such as comedy, music, and acrobatics.

Example

We watched an old-fashioned variety show on television last night.

Example

The theatre's winter programme features a traditional variety performance designed to appeal to families and tourists alike.
- vaudeville
- revue

Origin

From Middle French varieté (“variety”) (modern French variété (“variety; genre, type”)) or directly from its etymon Latin varietās (“difference; diversity, variety”) + English -ty (suffix forming abstract nouns from adjectives); by surface analysis, various + -ety. Varietās is derived from varius (“different, diverse, various; variegated”) (possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁weh₂- (“to abandon; to give out; to leave”)) + -tās (suffix forming feminine abstract nouns indicating a state of being). The English word displaced the native Old English mislīcnes. Sense 1.3.2 (“total number of distinct states of a system; logarithm to the base 2 of the total number of distinct states of a system”) was coined by the English psychiatrist William Ross Ashby (1903–1972) in his work An Introduction to Cybernetics (1956). Cognates * Galician variedade (“variety”) * Italian varietà (“difference; variety”) * Portuguese variedade (“variety”) * Spanish variedad (“breed; variety”)

Idioms2 entries