Meaning & use
varied
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Meanings
adjectivecomparable
Made up of many different kinds of things, so that it is not boring or the same.
Grammar: Goes before a noun or after be: a varied diet, or Her work is varied.
Patterns
- a varied selection of something
The menu offers a varied selection of salads.
She has a varied career as a nurse, writer, and teacher.
A varied diet gives you more nutrients.
adjectivecomparable
Differing from one case or time to another.
Grammar: Describes reactions or results that are not alike: responses were varied.
Reactions to the film were varied.
The students' backgrounds are widely varied.
Results have been varied across the region.
verbtransitive or intransitive
Past tense and past participle of vary: changed or differed.
Grammar: It is the -ed form of vary: prices varied, or she varied the route.
Patterns
- varied from something to something
The temperature varied from day to day.
He varied his routine to avoid boredom.
Opinions varied widely among the committee.
Word forms
| comparative | more varied |
|---|---|
| superlative | most varied |
Common combinations
- varied diet
- Doctors recommend a varied diet rich in vegetables.
- widely varied
- The reasons for leaving were widely varied.
- varied career
- He had a varied career before becoming a chef.
- varied selection
- The library has a varied selection of magazines.
- varied landscape
- The trail crosses a varied landscape of forest and desert.
Synonyms and how they differ
- diverse
- Diverse stresses real, basic differences, often between people or groups, while varied emphasizes a pleasing mixture.
- assorted
- Assorted usually describes a mixed collection of items, like chocolates, rather than activities or experiences.
- mixed
- Mixed simply says that different things are together, and can be negative, as in mixed results, where varied is more positive.
- various
- Various means several different ones and goes before plural nouns, while varied describes the quality of a whole.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: varied or various?
varied vs various
Various means several and different (various reasons), but it cannot be used after be or with very. You can say the diet is varied, not the diet is various.
Practice
Doctors advise eating a ___ diet that includes fruit, vegetables, grains, and protein.
Choose one answer.
Varied means made up of many different kinds. Various would need a plural noun, and varying or variable would mean the diet changes, not that it is rich in variety.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “varied”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.