Word.ws English Dictionary

diverse

Syllables: di·verse/daɪˈvɜːs//daɪˈvɝs/

diverse adjective: consisting of different elements; various.

Adjective

diverse (comparative more diverse, superlative most diverse)

  1. Consisting of different elements; various.
  2. Capable of or having various forms in different situations or at different times; multiform.
    • [T]he diverse mone abowt, / Now bryght, now browne, now bent, now full, and now her lyght is owt.1537–1542 (date written), Thomas Wyatt, “[Poems Written after 1536] Iopas’ Song”, in A[gnes] K[ate] Foxwell, editor, The Poems of Sir Thomas Wiat […], volume I, London: Hodder and Stoughton [for the]...
    • Eloquence is a great and diverse thing.1641, Ben Jonson, Discoveries
  3. Chiefly preceded by a descriptive word: of a community, organization, etc.: composed of people with a variety of different demographic characteristics such as ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic status; especially, having a sizeable representation of people who are minorities in the community, organization, etc.
    • The stage reflected the increasingly diverse Democratic party in which women and people of color are ascendant. Three women – two more than have ever shared a stage during a presidential primary debate and one of whom is Hindu – a Latino former congressman and a black senator participated.2019 June 27, Lauren Gambino, “Democratic 2020 candidates clash on healthcare, immigration and economy in first debate”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media...
  4. (broadly, nonstandard) Of a person: belonging to a minority group.
    • The Board's [i.e., Board of Governors'] goal is to commit to doubling the number of women and diverse members of the Academy by 2020.2016 January 22, “Academy Takes Historic Action to Increase Diversity”, in Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, archived from the original on 23 Jan 2016
    • Here to comment is diverse Congresswoman from Ohio—please welcome representative Marcia Fudge.2018 November 17, “Voter Fraud [cold open]”, in Saturday Night Live, season 44, episode 6
  5. Not the same; different, dissimilar, distinct.
    • And they gaue them drinke in veſſels of gold, (the veſſels being diuers one from another) and royall wine in abundance, according to the ſtate of the king.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Esther 1:7, signature Yy2, recto
    • [T]h' old Chäos (vvombe of th' Universe) / VVas never made of Members more diverſe.1614, [Guillaume de Salluste] Du Bartas, “Bethulia’s Rescue. The Wonder of Widowes: Honour of Wives: Mirrour of Maids. The Third Book.”, in Josuah Sylvester, transl., Du Bartas His Deuine Weekes and...
  6. (obsolete) Differing from what is good or right, or beneficial; bad, evil; harmful.
    • This kyng Edward the .ii. father to the noble kyng Edward the .iii. had .ii. bretherñ⸝ the one called Marſhall⸝ who was ryght wyld ⁊ diuers of condicions⸝ the other called ſir Aymon erle of Cane right wyse⸝ amiable⸝ gẽtle [gentle] and wellbeloued with al people.1523 February 7 (Gregorian calendar), Johan Froyssart [i.e., Jean Froissart], “Here Myn Auctour Maketh Mencion of the Parentꝭ [Parentis] of this Good Kyng Edward the .iii.”, in Here Begynneth the...
    • [Y]ou that beſt ſhould teach vs, / Haue miſdemean'd your ſelfe, and not a little: / Tovvard the King firſt, then his Lavves, in filling / The vvhole Realme, by your teaching & your Chaplaines / (for ſo vve are inform'd) vvith nevv opinions, / Diuers and dangerous; vvhich are Hereſies; / And not...1613 (date written), William Shakespeare, [John Fletcher], “The Famous History of the Life of King Henry the Eight”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio)...
  7. (obsolete) Having different colours; mottled, variegated.
  8. (obsolete, rare) Causing one to be indecisive between different viewpoints.
    • So many pathes, ſo many turnings ſeene, / That vvhich of them to take, in diuerſe doubt they been.1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book I, Canto I”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC, stanza 10, page 5

Adverb

diverse (comparative more diverse, superlative most diverse)

  1. (obsolete) Synonym of diversely (“in different directions”).
    • [The river in the Garden of Eden] novv divided into four main Streams, / Runs divers, vvandring many a famous Realme / And Country vvhereof here needs no account, […]1667, John Milton, “Book IV”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC, signature...
    • The Gourd, / And thirſty Cucumer, vvhen they perceive / Th' approaching Olive, vvith Reſentment fly / Her fatty Fibres, and vvith Tendrils creep / Diverſe, deteſting Contact; […]1708, [John Philips], “Book I”, in Cyder. […], London: […] J[acob] Tonson, […], →OCLC, page 17
    Synonyms:
    diversely

Verb

diverse (third-person singular simple present diverses, present participle diversing, simple past and past participle diversed)

  1. (transitive) To make (something) different or varied in form or quality; to alter, to change, to vary.
    • I Dyuerſe[,] I make difference⸝ Ie diuerſifie, prime coniu.1530 July 28 (Gregorian calendar), Iohan Palsgraue [i.e., John Palsgrave], “The Table of Verbes”, in Lesclarcissement de la langue francoyse⸝ […], [London]: […] [Richard Pynson] fynnysshed by Iohan...
    • In the Eocene, when the Old World and American mammal fauna were more nearly related, we have a hypothetical genus, Archipithecus, from which diversed a branch giving rise to the platyrhine apes, the families Cebidæ and Hapalidæ.1895 November 25 (date delivered), Eugène Dubois, “On Pithecanthropus erectus: A Transitional Form between Man and the Apes”, in The Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and...
  2. (transitive) To make the scope of (business, investments, etc.) different or varied, especially so as to balance and mitigate risks.
    • The investors in the SPC [special purpose company] derive their return, and well as diversing their risk, from three factors.2001, Marcel Jeucken, “Sustainability, Markets and Banking Products”, in Sustainable Finance and Banking: The Financial Sector and the Future of the Planet, London; Sterling, Va.: Earthscan...
  3. (intransitive, obsolete, rare) To go a different route or way from someone else; to diverge, to separate.
    • Then each to other vvell affectionate, / Friendſhip profeſſed vvith vnfained hart, / The Redcroſſe knight diuerſt, but forth rode Britomart.1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book III, Canto III”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC, stanza 62, page 443
    • We regret that the gentleman diversed so widely from the subject before the committee.1960 April 13, Clarence Cannon, “Witness: Hon. Toby Morris, a Representative in Congress from the State of Oklahoma”, in Public Works Appropriations for 1961: Hearings before the Subcommittee of the...

diverse meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

diverse in Hindi

consisting of different elements — see also various
विविध vividh
of a community, organization, etc.: composed of people with a variety of different demographic characteristics
विविधतापूर्ण vividhtāpūrṇ
not the same — see also different, dissimilar, distinct
भिन्न bhinn, विभिन्न vibhinn

diverse in Tamil

பலவகைப்பட்ட, வெவ்வேறான

diverse in Marathi

वैविध्यपूर्ण, विविध

diverse in Urdu

چند, گو نا گوں, کئی, مختلف, رنگا رنگ
More languagesFewer languages
diverse in Bengali
বিভিন্ন bibhinnô, বহু bohu
diverse in Telugu
విభిన్న vibhinna, విభిన్నమైన vibhinnamaina
diverse in Malayalam
ഭിന്നമായ, വ്യത്യാസമായ, ഭേദമായ, വിഭിന്നമായ
diverse in Kannada
ಬಗೆಬಗೆಯ, ತರತರದ, ಭಿನ್ನವಾದ, ಬೇರೆ ಬೇರೆಯ
diverse in Gujarati
વૈવિધ્યસભર
diverse in Odia
ବିବିଧତାପୂର୍ଣ୍ଣ
diverse in Arabic
مُتَنَوِّع mutanawwiʕ
diverse in Vietnamese
đa dạng, khác nhau

Examples of diverse in a sentence

  • ‘Our roads are diverse: farewell, love!’ said she. / ‘’Tis duty I abide by: homely sward / And not the rock-rough picturesque for me![’]1876, Robert Browning, “Bifurcation”, in Pacchiarotto and How He Worked in Distemper: With Other Poems, London: Smith, Elder, & Co., […]...
  • Intelligence contemplates all it sees— / Albeit but a point in the infinite / Universe—with but two rays of light, / Which illustrate diversest destinies; […]1881, Thomas Caulfield Irwin, Sonnets on the Poetry and Problems of Life, Dublin: M[ichael] H[enry] Gill & Son; London: Simpkin, Marshall 7...
  • This is what collectivism forgot — the freedom to be diverse, and the conception of each diverse individual being inherently of equal value and having open-ended potential for contribution.1998, Ken Shelton, Integrity at Work, Provo, Ut.: Executive Excellence Pub., →ISBN, page 42:
  • To ſeize his papers, Curl, vvas next thy care; / His papers light, fly diverſe, toſt in air: […]1729, [Alexander Pope], “Book the Second”, in The Dunciad. With Notes Variorum, and the Prolegomena of Scriblerus, London: […] Lawton...

All 40 example sentences with diverse

Synonyms of diverse

14 more synonymsFewer synonyms

Antonyms

All synonyms and antonyms of diverse

Forms of diverse

Adjective
comparativemore diverse
superlativemost diverse
alternative formdiuers
alternative formdivers
Adverb
comparativemore diverse
superlativemost diverse
Verb
third-person singular presentdiverses
present participlediversing
past participlediversed
pastdiversed

Origin of diverse

PIE word *dwóh₁ The adjective is derived from Middle English divers, diverse (“different, divergent”), from Anglo-Norman divers, Anglo-Norman divers, and Old French divers (“different; of various kinds”) (modern French divers), and directly from their etymon Latin dīversus (“different, diverse”), an adjective use of the perfect passive participle of dīvertō (“to divert, turn away”), from dī- (variant of dis- (prefix meaning ‘apart, in two’)) + vertō (“to turn”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wert- (“to rotate; to turn”)). Doublet of divert. The adverb is derived from Middle English diverse (“differently; at various times”), from divers, diverse (adjective) (see above).

From Middle English diversen (“to differ, diverge; to become different, change; to vary; to change or vary (something); to make a distinction, distinguish; to divert”), from Anglo-Norman diverser, Middle French diverser, and Old French diverser (“to alter, change; to differ, diverge; to disagree”), from Late Latin diversare (“to differ”), and then either: * a frequentative form of Latin dīvertere, the present active infinitive of dīvertō (see etymology 1); or * from dī- (variant of dis- (prefix meaning ‘apart, in two’)) + versāre (the present active infinitive of versō (“to alter, change; to keep turning, whirl”), a frequentative form of vertō: see etymology 1). Etymology 2 sense 1 (“synonym of diversify”) became obsolete in the 16th century, and was probably recoined in the 20th century.

Words formed from diverse

Words that rhyme with diverse

36 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about diverse

What does diverse mean?
Diverse means consisting of different elements; various.
What is diverse in Hindi?
Diverse in Hindi is विविध (vividh), विविधतापूर्ण (vividhtāpūrṇ), भिन्न (bhinn). See Diverse meaning in Hindi.
How do you use diverse in a sentence?
‘Our roads are diverse: farewell, love!’ said she. / ‘’Tis duty I abide by: homely sward / And not the rock-rough picturesque for me![’]
What part of speech is diverse?
Diverse can be an adjective, an adverb or a verb.
How do you pronounce diverse?
Diverse is pronounced /daɪˈvɜːs/ (UK).

Words near diverse in the dictionary

  1. diverless
  2. divers
  3. diversant
  4. diversants
  5. diversative
  6. diverse
  7. diversed
  8. diversely
  9. diverseness
  10. diversenesses
  11. divershitty

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: diverse (page history and authors); diverse (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); diverse (Marathi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); diverse (Urdu Wiktionary) (page history and authors); বহু (Bengali) (page history and authors); diverse (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); diverse (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors); diverse (Gujarati, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); diverse (Odia, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-us-diverse.ogg, LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-diverse.wav.

Cite this entry: “diverse.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/diverse. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.