variantadj.n.

Brit.

/ˈvɛːrɪənt/, U.S.

/ˈvɛriənt/

Forms: Also Middle English–1500s varyant (Middle English -te), varyaunt (Middle English -te), Middle English variaunt(e, 1500s Scottish wareant.

Etymology: < Old French variant (French variant , = Spanish variante , Portuguese variante , Italian variante ), < Latin variant- , varians , present participle of variāre to vary v.

A. adj.

a. Of persons: Changeful in disposition or purpose; inconstant, fickle. Also const. of or in. Now rare.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > will > decision > irresolution or vacillation > inconstancy > [adjective]

unfastc888

unstathelfasteOE

unsteadfasta1200

fleeting?c1225

changeablea1275

ficklea1275

unstablec1290

waveringc1315

flickerc1325

loose in the haftc1325

motleyc1380

unsadc1384

variablea1387

variantc1386

ticklec1400

inconstant1402

flitting1413

brittle1420

plianta1425

mutablec1425

shittle1440

shittle-witted1448

moonishc1450

unconstant1483

unfirm1483

varying?a1500

pliablea1513

fluctuant1575

changeling1577

shittle-headed1580

cheverel1583

off and on1583

chameleon-like1589

changeful1590

limber1602

unsteady1604

ticklish1606

skittish1609

startling1619

labile1623

uncertaina1625

cheverelized1625

remuant1625

fluctuate1631

fluctuary1632

various1636

contrarious1643

epileptical1646

fluxilea1654

shittle-braineda1655

multivolent1656

totter-headed1662

on and off1668

self-inconsistent1678

weathercocka1680

whifflinga1680

versatile1682

veering1684

fast and loose1697

inconsistent1709

insteadfast1728

unfixing1810

unsteadied1814

chameleonic1821

labefact1874

ballastless1884

weathercocky1886

whiffle-minded1902

c1386 G. Chaucer Canon's Yeoman's Tale 622 On his falshede fayn wold I me wreke, If I wist how, But he is heer and there, He is so variant, he byt no where.

c1450 Mankind 274 in Macro Plays 11 Be stedefast in condycyon! se ȝe be not varyant!

c1460 (?c1400) Tale of Beryn l. 1974 Now þow wolt, & now þow nolt;..Now sey oon, & sith a-nothir; so variant of mynde!

1509 S. Hawes Pastime of Pleasure (1845) xxvii. 130 To be..In stable love fixt and not variaunt.

?1548 J. Bale Image Bothe Churches (new ed.) ii. sig. giij^v They are..no where stedefast and vnforme, but euerye where variaunt and folyshe.

1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. iv. 145 He was also deceitfull, variant, and fraudulent.

1890 ‘R. Boldrewood’ Colonial Reformer (1891) 360 Calm and resolute, if occasionally variant of mood.

†b. Acting in a changeable or fickle manner.

ΚΠ

1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (Rolls) VIII. 299 He was to large of ȝiftes,..redy to speke and variaunt of dedes.

†c. Dissentient, disagreeing. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > language > statement > dissent or disagreement > [adjective]

variant1412

discordant1474

disagreeing1550

dissenting1550

dissident?c1550

disassentinga1572

differinga1586

disagreed1596

discorded1597

incompliable1625

unconsented1631

two1650

dissentient1651

dissentive1661

unassenting1836

divaricate1855

1412–20 J. Lydgate tr. Hist. Troy iii. 3657 Sethen ȝe alle assenten and accorde, Fro ȝoure sentence I wil nat discorde, In no wyse to be variaunt.

a. Of things: Exhibiting variation or change; tending to vary or alter; not remaining uniform.

ΘΚΠ

the world > time > change > changeableness > [adjective]

slidinga900

wankleeOE

windyc1000

unsteadfastc1200

fleeting?c1225

loose?c1225

brotelc1315

unstablec1340

varyingc1340

variantc1374

motleyc1380

ungroundedc1380

muablea1393

passiblea1393

remuablea1393

changeablea1398

movablea1398

variablec1397

slidderya1400

ticklec1400

variantc1412

flitting1413

mutable?a1425

movingc1425

flaskisable1430

flickering1430

transmutablec1430

vertible1447

brittlea1450

ficklea1450

permutablec1450

unfirmc1450

uncertain1477

turnable1483

unsteadfast1483

vagrantc1522

inconstant1526

alterable?1531

stirringc1540

slippery1548

various1552

slid?1553

mutala1561

rolling1561

weathery1563

unconstant1568

interchangeable1574

fluctuant1575

stayless1575

transitive1575

voluble1575

changeling1577

queasy1579

desultory1581

huff-puff1582

unstaid1586

vagrant1586

changeful1590

floating1594

Protean1594

unstayed1594

swimming1596

anchorless1597

mobilec1600

ticklish1601

catching1603

labile1603

unrooted1604

quicksilvered1605

versatile1605

insubstantial1607

uncertain1609

brandling1611

rootless1611

squeasy1611

wind-changinga1616

insolid1618

ambulatory1625

versatilous1629

plastic1633

desultorious1637

unbottomed1641

fluid1642

fluent1648

yea-and-nay1648

versipellous1650

flexile1651

uncentred1652

variating1653

chequered1656

slideable1662

transchangeative1662

weathercock-like1663

flicketing1674

fluxa1677

lapsable1678

wanton1681

veering1684

upon the weathercock1702

contingent1703

unsettled?1726

fermentable1731

afloat1757

brickle1768

wavy1795

vagarious1798

unsettled1803

fitful1810

metamorphosical1811

undulating1815

tittupya1817

titubant1817

mutative1818

papier mâché1818

teetotum1819

vacillating1822

capricious1823

sensitive1828

quicksilvery1829

unengrafted1829

fluxionala1834

proteiform1833

liquid1835

tottlish1835

kaleidoscopic1846

versative1846

kaleidoscopical1858

tottery1861

choppy1865

variative1874

variational1879

wimbly-wambly1881

fluctuable1882

shifty1882

giveable1884

shifty1884

tippy1886

mutatory1890

upsettable1890

rocky1897

undulatory1897

streaky1898

tottly1905

tipply1906

up and down1907

inertialess1927

sometimey1946

rise-and-fall1950

switchable1961

c1374 G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (1868) i. met. v. 22 Þi myȝt attempreþ þo variauntz sesons of þe ȝere.

c1400 Pety Job 472 in 26 Pol. Poems 136 My thoughtes wandre wyde whare, For they ben, lorde, full variaunte.

c1430 J. Lydgate Minor Poems (Percy Soc.) 71 God of his grace..preserve youre variaunt brutilnesse.

1532 (c1385) Usk's Test. Loue in Wks. G. Chaucer ii. f. cccxlii After the varyaunt opinyon in false hertes of vnstable people.

1533 J. Bellenden tr. Livy Hist. Rome (1903) II. iv. xv. 103 Þe cry of romanis was variant, slaw, & but curage.

1671 R. McWard True Non-conformist 136 The Ordinances..therefore were appointed..in a variant and mutable forme.

c1674 Acc. Scotland's Griev. under Lauderdale's Min. 10 It was also both inconstant in its being, and variant in its number and method.

1751 J. Wesley Wks. (1872) XIV. 40 Nouns Variant in their gender are dies and finis.

†b. Of fortune, conditions, etc.: = variable adj. 1a. Obsolete. (In early use partly after sense A. 1)

ΚΠ

c1412 T. Hoccleve De Regimine Principum 66 So flyttyng is sche [sc. Fortune], and so wariant, Ther is no trust vpon hir fair lawhyng.

1470–85 T. Malory Morte d'Arthur xx. xvii. 827 But fortune is soo varyaunt, and the whele soo meuable, there nys none constaunte abydynge.

1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid xi. viii. 117 The variant chance Of our onstabill lyfe.

1561 Newe Enterlude Script. Queene Hester sig. Fij^v Contente To thinke it no lyghtnes, nor wytte inconstante But the necessytie of tymes varyant.

a1586 W. Dunbar in W. A. Craigie Maitland Folio MS (1919) I. 386 So variant is þis warldis rent That nane þairof can be content.

c. Of wind: Changing, shifting. rare.

ΘΚΠ

the world > the earth > weather and the atmosphere > weather > wind > [adjective] > changeable

flexible1612

variable1665

veerable1694

baffling1778

variant1847

1847 H. W. Longfellow Evangeline i. i. 82 Above in the variant breezes Numberless noisy weathercocks rattled.

a. Exhibiting difference or variety; diversified, varied; diverse, different.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > relationship > variety > [adjective]

sunderlyeOE

manifoldeOE

selcoutha1000

felefoldc1000

mislichOE

alkinOE

manykinOE

fele-kync1175

serekina1300

sundera1325

sundrya1325

serea1340

divers1340

varyingc1340

variantc1380

muchfoldc1384

serelepesa1400

serelepya1400

multifaryc1460

sundryfoldc1460

multiplicate?a1475

variable?a1475

sundrilyc1480

diversea1542

particoloured1591

multifarious1593

Protean1594

daedal1596

choiceful1605

Daedalian1605

multiplex1606

variated1608

diversified1611

multiplicious1617

variousa1634

multivarious1636

mosaic1644

multiple1647

omnigenous1650

chequered1656

plurifarious1656

ununiform1660

variate1677

disuniform1687

Proteusian1689

unsteady1690

unequable1693

inequable1721

variegating1727

varied1733

multitudinous1744

multifold1806

polygeneous1818

unequalized1822

ruleless1836

varicoloured185.

non-uniform1856

omnigener1857

polytypic1858

multiferous1860

variatious1871

variegated1872

polytypical1890

c1380 J. Wyclif Wks. (1880) 301 These freris habitis,..þat ben þus large & variaunt as weren habitis of pharisees.

a1400–50 Alexander 5651 Þai ware visid all in versis in variant lettirs.

c1400 Rom. Rose 1917 The arwis were so fulle of rage, So variaunt of diversitee.

1482 Monk of Evesham lvii. 110 A variant medelyng of melody sownyd wyth alle.

1526 R. Whitford tr. Martiloge (1893) 19 He was put to many varyaunt turmentes.

1584 King James VI & I Ess. Prentise Poesie sig. Eiiij So Iob and Ieremie..Did right descryue their ioyes, their woes and torts, In variant verse of hundreth thousand sorts.

?1611 G. Chapman in tr. Homer Iliads ii. Comm. The decorum that some poor critics have stood upon..is far from the variant order of nature.

1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. vi. 291 They who would trauerse earths variant face.

a1817 T. Dwight Trav. New-Eng. & N.-Y. (1821) II. 457 The plains are of moderate extent: the surface being almost every where variant, and undulating.

1855 P. J. Bailey Mystic 105 The angels..'stablishing In variant countries various roots of men.

1858 H. Bushnell Nature & Supernatural ix. 260 He can produce variant results through invariable causes.

†b. Of colours: Varied, variegated. Also of cloth or an animal in respect of colour. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > colour > variegation > [adjective] > of colour

varianta1400

variatec1440

variable1553

gangean1623

variegated1664

the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile fabric or an article of textile fabric > textile fabric > textile fabric of specific colour > [adjective]

motleyc1380

varianta1400

shadowed1639

mixture1784

corbeau1810

Lovat1895

tone-on-tone1939

the world > animals > animal body > markings or colourings > [adjective] > dappled or spotted

spotteda1325

flecked1377

dappledc1400

maculous?a1425

mailedc1425

variant1502

garled1506

sparked1552

menil1611

marbled1629

ticked1688

varied1715

maculose1727

a1400–50 Alexander 4336 Nouthire..transmitte we na vebbis To vermylion ne violett ne variant littis.

1471 G. Ripley Compound of Alchymy vi. viii, in E. Ashmole Theatrum Chem. Britannicum (1652) 163 By colors varyante aye new and new.

1473–4 in T. Dickson Accts. Treasurer Scotl. (1877) I. 20 vij elne of tartar of variant hewis to lyne a gowne of blac.

1502 in J. B. Paul Accts. Treasurer Scotl. (1900) II. 346 Ane variant hors giffin to the King.

1507 in J. B. Paul Accts. Treasurer Scotl. (1901) III. 260 Taffeti, grene, rede, blew, and variant.

1549 Burgh Rec. Stirling (1887) 57 Ane gown of wareant champit worset, price four li. xs.

1575 32nd Gen. Assemblie in A. Peterkin Bk. Universall Kirk Scotl. (1839) 149 We think..unseemly..all kinde of..licht and variant hewis in cloathing, as red, blew, ȝellow, and sicklyke.

1600 Wisdome Doctor Dodypoll i. sig. A3 Welcome bright Morne, that with thy golden rayes, Reueal'st the variant colours of the world.

a. Differing or discrepant from something; †also const. to (= from).

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > relationship > difference > [adjective] > different from

unlikec1175

variantc1400

variable1509

repugnant1551

unconform1653

inconform1659

c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (1839) x. 122 And alle theise han manye Articles of oure Feythe, and to othere thei ben varyaunt.

1473–5 in Cal. Proc. Chanc. Q. Eliz. (1830) II. Pref. 60 The matter comprised in the side replicacion is new mater variaunt from her bill.

1534 R. Whittington tr. Cicero Thre Bks. Tullyes Offyces i. sig. D.8 It is no thynge varyaunt fro the dignyte of a wyse man.

1548 E. Gest Treat. againste Masse sig. Kvii^v Thee prieste pryvee Masse..is not quadrant, but variant to the sayd word [of God].

1741 T. Robinson Common Law of Kent ii. 9 Most of the Customs of this Kingdom variant from the Common Law.

1771 Ann. Reg. 1770 143/2 The publication in the papers was variant from that which he sent home.

1860 J. P. Kennedy Mem. W. Wirt I. xxii. 355 His first impressions of him..are singularly variant from those which [etc.].

1880 A. D. Whitney Odd or Even? xli Words that were absurdly variant from all her present mood.

b. Without const. (Cf. various adj. 8d.)

ΚΠ

1586 J. Ferne Blazon of Gentrie To Innes of Court, sig. Avi^v They shall find the interpretations thereof many wayes variant and diuers.

1865 Visct. Strangford Sel. Writings (1869) II. 187 With a variant spelling of the body of the word.

1879 F. W. Farrar Life & Work St. Paul I. vi. xx. 373 One of the numberless instances of variant readings in the Hebrew.

1897 J. M. Whiton Reconsid. & Reinforcem. 23 These..are definitions not too variant to stand indifferently for synonyms of spirit.

c. Biology. Varying or diverging from type.

ΘΚΠ

the world > life > biology > taxonomy > [adjective] > varying from type

variable1859

variant1881

1881 Athenæum No. 2818. 560 ‘Angela’ is Spielhagen's variant child.

1896 Advance (Chicago) 23 Apr. 592/1 In nature a variant minority is liable to be diluted and to disappear by intermixture.

B. n.

a. A form or modification differing in some respect from other forms of the same thing.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > relationship > variety > [noun] > a variant or variation

variance1497

vary1600

variousness1628

varying1628

variegation1668

modification1669

diversificationa1676

variation1699

variant1849

1849 A. H. Layard Nineveh & Remains II. ii. i. 171 (note) Many of these [cuneiform] characters are undoubtedly what are termed ‘variants’; that is, merely a different way of forming the same letter.

1862 G. Rawlinson Five Great Monarchies: Chaldæa I. 143 Il, of course, is but a variant of El.

1869 A. J. Ellis On Early Eng. Pronunc. I. i. iv. 248 Other variants of course occur from carelessness.

1869 G. Rawlinson Man. Anc. Hist. 336 The names seem, however, to be chiefly variants of the general ethnic title.

b. A various reading; spec. a textual variation in two or more copies of a printed work (not necessarily implying reimpression).

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > literature > literary and textual criticism > textual criticism > version of text > [noun] > reading > various reading

varia lectioa1651

various lections1659

various reading(s)1659

variant1855

society > leisure > the arts > literature > literary and textual criticism > textual criticism > version of text > [noun] > reading > various reading > textual variation in two or more copies

variant1927

1855 F. A. Paley in tr. Aeschylus Agamemnon in Trag. 381/2 The variants -οντο and -όντες only show that a termination was added to the original -ον.

1881 B. F. Westcott & F. J. A. Hort New Test. in Orig. Greek II. Introd. i. 3 The primary work of textual criticism is merely to discriminate the erroneous variants from the true.

1927 R. B. McKerrow Introd. Bibliogr. ii. vi. 208 Besides these added lines, The Devil's Charter exhibits a very large number of striking variants in different copies, some being mere corrections of literal errors, others important alterations in wording.

1953 C. Hinman in Shakespeare Q. IV. 280 I have been able to construct an instrument which..has enabled me to collate well over a hundred folio pages a day for some months... Taking reasonable care, the investigator can hardly fail to note any variant, however minute, in two copies of the page being examined.

1972 P. Gaskell New Introd. Bibliogr. 357 Warner Barnes..machine-collated an average of six copies of each of his author's eighteen primary editions... In ten of them he found possible evidence of concealed..reimpressions; in another four, variant states of the type not indicating reimpression... Most of the variants shown up by the machine were trivial.

2. A variation of the original work, story, song, etc.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > literature > literary and textual criticism > textual criticism > version of text > [noun] > variant version

variant1872

1872 Ralston Songs Russian People 200 There are many variants of the same song, but they do not differ materially.

1877 A. B. Edwards Thousand Miles up Nile Pref. p. xiii Religious books, variants of the Ritual, moral essays, maxims.

1885 E. Clodd Myths & Dreams i. iv. 70 They are the variants of stories presumably related in the Aryan fatherland.

3. Natural History. A variant form or type.

ΘΚΠ

the world > life > biology > taxonomy > [noun] > variation from a type > a variant form

variant1895

1895 I. K. Funk et al. Standard Dict. Eng. Lang. II.

Draft additions June 2003

variant CJD n. Medicine (in full variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease) a form of spongiform encephalopathy distinguished from typical (sporadic) Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease by earlier age of onset, early psychiatric and sensory symptoms, and certain neuropathological features (esp. prominent prion protein plaques), and thought to be causally linked with bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE); abbreviated vCJD.

ΚΠ

1997 Proc. National Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 94 14279/1 Investigations of the prion diseases have taken on new significance with the reports of more than 20 cases of an atypical, variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCGD) in teenagers and young adults.

1999 Lancet 2 Jan. 18 The agent that causes variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (variant CJD) is indistinguishable from the causative agent of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).

2000 Times 30 Aug. i. 9/1 Ministers believe that they must take every possible precaution to prevent the risk of patients contracting variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD).

2003 Independent (Nexis) 21 Apr. Other diseases such as variant-CJD, linked with BSE in cows,..are transmitted through food.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1916; most recently modified version published online December 2021).

单词	variant
释义	variantadj.n. Brit. /ˈvɛːrɪənt/, U.S. /ˈvɛriənt/ Forms: Also Middle English–1500s varyant (Middle English -te), varyaunt (Middle English -te), Middle English variaunt(e, 1500s Scottish wareant. Etymology: < Old French variant (French variant , = Spanish variante , Portuguese variante , Italian variante ), < Latin variant- , varians , present participle of variāre to vary v. A. adj. 1. a. Of persons: Changeful in disposition or purpose; inconstant, fickle. Also const. of or in. Now rare. ΘΚΠ the mind > will > decision > irresolution or vacillation > inconstancy > [adjective] unfastc888 unstathelfasteOE unsteadfasta1200 fleeting?c1225 changeablea1275 ficklea1275 unstablec1290 waveringc1315 flickerc1325 loose in the haftc1325 motleyc1380 unsadc1384 variablea1387 variantc1386 ticklec1400 inconstant1402 flitting1413 brittle1420 plianta1425 mutablec1425 shittle1440 shittle-witted1448 moonishc1450 unconstant1483 unfirm1483 varying?a1500 pliablea1513 fluctuant1575 changeling1577 shittle-headed1580 cheverel1583 off and on1583 chameleon-like1589 changeful1590 limber1602 unsteady1604 ticklish1606 skittish1609 startling1619 labile1623 uncertaina1625 cheverelized1625 remuant1625 fluctuate1631 fluctuary1632 various1636 contrarious1643 epileptical1646 fluxilea1654 shittle-braineda1655 multivolent1656 totter-headed1662 on and off1668 self-inconsistent1678 weathercocka1680 whifflinga1680 versatile1682 veering1684 fast and loose1697 inconsistent1709 insteadfast1728 unfixing1810 unsteadied1814 chameleonic1821 labefact1874 ballastless1884 weathercocky1886 whiffle-minded1902 c1386 G. Chaucer Canon's Yeoman's Tale 622 On his falshede fayn wold I me wreke, If I wist how, But he is heer and there, He is so variant, he byt no where. c1450 Mankind 274 in Macro Plays 11 Be stedefast in condycyon! se ȝe be not varyant! c1460 (?c1400) Tale of Beryn l. 1974 Now þow wolt, & now þow nolt;..Now sey oon, & sith a-nothir; so variant of mynde! 1509 S. Hawes Pastime of Pleasure (1845) xxvii. 130 To be..In stable love fixt and not variaunt. ?1548 J. Bale Image Bothe Churches (new ed.) ii. sig. giij^v They are..no where stedefast and vnforme, but euerye where variaunt and folyshe. 1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. iv. 145 He was also deceitfull, variant, and fraudulent. 1890 ‘R. Boldrewood’ Colonial Reformer (1891) 360 Calm and resolute, if occasionally variant of mood. †b. Acting in a changeable or fickle manner. ΚΠ 1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (Rolls) VIII. 299 He was to large of ȝiftes,..redy to speke and variaunt of dedes. †c. Dissentient, disagreeing. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > language > statement > dissent or disagreement > [adjective] variant1412 discordant1474 disagreeing1550 dissenting1550 dissident?c1550 disassentinga1572 differinga1586 disagreed1596 discorded1597 incompliable1625 unconsented1631 two1650 dissentient1651 dissentive1661 unassenting1836 divaricate1855 1412–20 J. Lydgate tr. Hist. Troy iii. 3657 Sethen ȝe alle assenten and accorde, Fro ȝoure sentence I wil nat discorde, In no wyse to be variaunt. 2. a. Of things: Exhibiting variation or change; tending to vary or alter; not remaining uniform. ΘΚΠ the world > time > change > changeableness > [adjective] slidinga900 wankleeOE windyc1000 unsteadfastc1200 fleeting?c1225 loose?c1225 brotelc1315 unstablec1340 varyingc1340 variantc1374 motleyc1380 ungroundedc1380 muablea1393 passiblea1393 remuablea1393 changeablea1398 movablea1398 variablec1397 slidderya1400 ticklec1400 variantc1412 flitting1413 mutable?a1425 movingc1425 flaskisable1430 flickering1430 transmutablec1430 vertible1447 brittlea1450 ficklea1450 permutablec1450 unfirmc1450 uncertain1477 turnable1483 unsteadfast1483 vagrantc1522 inconstant1526 alterable?1531 stirringc1540 slippery1548 various1552 slid?1553 mutala1561 rolling1561 weathery1563 unconstant1568 interchangeable1574 fluctuant1575 stayless1575 transitive1575 voluble1575 changeling1577 queasy1579 desultory1581 huff-puff1582 unstaid1586 vagrant1586 changeful1590 floating1594 Protean1594 unstayed1594 swimming1596 anchorless1597 mobilec1600 ticklish1601 catching1603 labile1603 unrooted1604 quicksilvered1605 versatile1605 insubstantial1607 uncertain1609 brandling1611 rootless1611 squeasy1611 wind-changinga1616 insolid1618 ambulatory1625 versatilous1629 plastic1633 desultorious1637 unbottomed1641 fluid1642 fluent1648 yea-and-nay1648 versipellous1650 flexile1651 uncentred1652 variating1653 chequered1656 slideable1662 transchangeative1662 weathercock-like1663 flicketing1674 fluxa1677 lapsable1678 wanton1681 veering1684 upon the weathercock1702 contingent1703 unsettled?1726 fermentable1731 afloat1757 brickle1768 wavy1795 vagarious1798 unsettled1803 fitful1810 metamorphosical1811 undulating1815 tittupya1817 titubant1817 mutative1818 papier mâché1818 teetotum1819 vacillating1822 capricious1823 sensitive1828 quicksilvery1829 unengrafted1829 fluxionala1834 proteiform1833 liquid1835 tottlish1835 kaleidoscopic1846 versative1846 kaleidoscopical1858 tottery1861 choppy1865 variative1874 variational1879 wimbly-wambly1881 fluctuable1882 shifty1882 giveable1884 shifty1884 tippy1886 mutatory1890 upsettable1890 rocky1897 undulatory1897 streaky1898 tottly1905 tipply1906 up and down1907 inertialess1927 sometimey1946 rise-and-fall1950 switchable1961 c1374 G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (1868) i. met. v. 22 Þi myȝt attempreþ þo variauntz sesons of þe ȝere. c1400 Pety Job 472 in 26 Pol. Poems 136 My thoughtes wandre wyde whare, For they ben, lorde, full variaunte. c1430 J. Lydgate Minor Poems (Percy Soc.) 71 God of his grace..preserve youre variaunt brutilnesse. 1532 (c1385) Usk's Test. Loue in Wks. G. Chaucer ii. f. cccxlii After the varyaunt opinyon in false hertes of vnstable people. 1533 J. Bellenden tr. Livy Hist. Rome (1903) II. iv. xv. 103 Þe cry of romanis was variant, slaw, & but curage. 1671 R. McWard True Non-conformist 136 The Ordinances..therefore were appointed..in a variant and mutable forme. c1674 Acc. Scotland's Griev. under Lauderdale's Min. 10 It was also both inconstant in its being, and variant in its number and method. 1751 J. Wesley Wks. (1872) XIV. 40 Nouns Variant in their gender are dies and finis. †b. Of fortune, conditions, etc.: = variable adj. 1a. Obsolete. (In early use partly after sense A. 1) ΚΠ c1412 T. Hoccleve De Regimine Principum 66 So flyttyng is sche [sc. Fortune], and so wariant, Ther is no trust vpon hir fair lawhyng. 1470–85 T. Malory Morte d'Arthur xx. xvii. 827 But fortune is soo varyaunt, and the whele soo meuable, there nys none constaunte abydynge. 1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid xi. viii. 117 The variant chance Of our onstabill lyfe. 1561 Newe Enterlude Script. Queene Hester sig. Fij^v Contente To thinke it no lyghtnes, nor wytte inconstante But the necessytie of tymes varyant. a1586 W. Dunbar in W. A. Craigie Maitland Folio MS (1919) I. 386 So variant is þis warldis rent That nane þairof can be content. c. Of wind: Changing, shifting. rare. ΘΚΠ the world > the earth > weather and the atmosphere > weather > wind > [adjective] > changeable flexible1612 variable1665 veerable1694 baffling1778 variant1847 1847 H. W. Longfellow Evangeline i. i. 82 Above in the variant breezes Numberless noisy weathercocks rattled. 3. a. Exhibiting difference or variety; diversified, varied; diverse, different. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > relationship > variety > [adjective] sunderlyeOE manifoldeOE selcoutha1000 felefoldc1000 mislichOE alkinOE manykinOE fele-kync1175 serekina1300 sundera1325 sundrya1325 serea1340 divers1340 varyingc1340 variantc1380 muchfoldc1384 serelepesa1400 serelepya1400 multifaryc1460 sundryfoldc1460 multiplicate?a1475 variable?a1475 sundrilyc1480 diversea1542 particoloured1591 multifarious1593 Protean1594 daedal1596 choiceful1605 Daedalian1605 multiplex1606 variated1608 diversified1611 multiplicious1617 variousa1634 multivarious1636 mosaic1644 multiple1647 omnigenous1650 chequered1656 plurifarious1656 ununiform1660 variate1677 disuniform1687 Proteusian1689 unsteady1690 unequable1693 inequable1721 variegating1727 varied1733 multitudinous1744 multifold1806 polygeneous1818 unequalized1822 ruleless1836 varicoloured185. non-uniform1856 omnigener1857 polytypic1858 multiferous1860 variatious1871 variegated1872 polytypical1890 c1380 J. Wyclif Wks. (1880) 301 These freris habitis,..þat ben þus large & variaunt as weren habitis of pharisees. a1400–50 Alexander 5651 Þai ware visid all in versis in variant lettirs. c1400 Rom. Rose 1917 The arwis were so fulle of rage, So variaunt of diversitee. 1482 Monk of Evesham lvii. 110 A variant medelyng of melody sownyd wyth alle. 1526 R. Whitford tr. Martiloge (1893) 19 He was put to many varyaunt turmentes. 1584 King James VI & I Ess. Prentise Poesie sig. Eiiij So Iob and Ieremie..Did right descryue their ioyes, their woes and torts, In variant verse of hundreth thousand sorts. ?1611 G. Chapman in tr. Homer Iliads ii. Comm. The decorum that some poor critics have stood upon..is far from the variant order of nature. 1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. vi. 291 They who would trauerse earths variant face. a1817 T. Dwight Trav. New-Eng. & N.-Y. (1821) II. 457 The plains are of moderate extent: the surface being almost every where variant, and undulating. 1855 P. J. Bailey Mystic 105 The angels..'stablishing In variant countries various roots of men. 1858 H. Bushnell Nature & Supernatural ix. 260 He can produce variant results through invariable causes. †b. Of colours: Varied, variegated. Also of cloth or an animal in respect of colour. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > matter > colour > variegation > [adjective] > of colour varianta1400 variatec1440 variable1553 gangean1623 variegated1664 the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile fabric or an article of textile fabric > textile fabric > textile fabric of specific colour > [adjective] motleyc1380 varianta1400 shadowed1639 mixture1784 corbeau1810 Lovat1895 tone-on-tone1939 the world > animals > animal body > markings or colourings > [adjective] > dappled or spotted spotteda1325 flecked1377 dappledc1400 maculous?a1425 mailedc1425 variant1502 garled1506 sparked1552 menil1611 marbled1629 ticked1688 varied1715 maculose1727 a1400–50 Alexander 4336 Nouthire..transmitte we na vebbis To vermylion ne violett ne variant littis. 1471 G. Ripley Compound of Alchymy vi. viii, in E. Ashmole Theatrum Chem. Britannicum (1652) 163 By colors varyante aye new and new. 1473–4 in T. Dickson Accts. Treasurer Scotl. (1877) I. 20 vij elne of tartar of variant hewis to lyne a gowne of blac. 1502 in J. B. Paul Accts. Treasurer Scotl. (1900) II. 346 Ane variant hors giffin to the King. 1507 in J. B. Paul Accts. Treasurer Scotl. (1901) III. 260 Taffeti, grene, rede, blew, and variant. 1549 Burgh Rec. Stirling (1887) 57 Ane gown of wareant champit worset, price four li. xs. 1575 32nd Gen. Assemblie in A. Peterkin Bk. Universall Kirk Scotl. (1839) 149 We think..unseemly..all kinde of..licht and variant hewis in cloathing, as red, blew, ȝellow, and sicklyke. 1600 Wisdome Doctor Dodypoll i. sig. A3 Welcome bright Morne, that with thy golden rayes, Reueal'st the variant colours of the world. 4. a. Differing or discrepant from something; †also const. to (= from). ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > relationship > difference > [adjective] > different from unlikec1175 variantc1400 variable1509 repugnant1551 unconform1653 inconform1659 c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (1839) x. 122 And alle theise han manye Articles of oure Feythe, and to othere thei ben varyaunt. 1473–5 in Cal. Proc. Chanc. Q. Eliz. (1830) II. Pref. 60 The matter comprised in the side replicacion is new mater variaunt from her bill. 1534 R. Whittington tr. Cicero Thre Bks. Tullyes Offyces i. sig. D.8 It is no thynge varyaunt fro the dignyte of a wyse man. 1548 E. Gest Treat. againste Masse sig. Kvii^v Thee prieste pryvee Masse..is not quadrant, but variant to the sayd word [of God]. 1741 T. Robinson Common Law of Kent ii. 9 Most of the Customs of this Kingdom variant from the Common Law. 1771 Ann. Reg. 1770 143/2 The publication in the papers was variant from that which he sent home. 1860 J. P. Kennedy Mem. W. Wirt I. xxii. 355 His first impressions of him..are singularly variant from those which [etc.]. 1880 A. D. Whitney Odd or Even? xli Words that were absurdly variant from all her present mood. b. Without const. (Cf. various adj. 8d.) ΚΠ 1586 J. Ferne Blazon of Gentrie To Innes of Court, sig. Avi^v They shall find the interpretations thereof many wayes variant and diuers. 1865 Visct. Strangford Sel. Writings (1869) II. 187 With a variant spelling of the body of the word. 1879 F. W. Farrar Life & Work St. Paul I. vi. xx. 373 One of the numberless instances of variant readings in the Hebrew. 1897 J. M. Whiton Reconsid. & Reinforcem. 23 These..are definitions not too variant to stand indifferently for synonyms of spirit. c. Biology. Varying or diverging from type. ΘΚΠ the world > life > biology > taxonomy > [adjective] > varying from type variable1859 variant1881 1881 Athenæum No. 2818. 560 ‘Angela’ is Spielhagen's variant child. 1896 Advance (Chicago) 23 Apr. 592/1 In nature a variant minority is liable to be diluted and to disappear by intermixture. B. n. 1. a. A form or modification differing in some respect from other forms of the same thing. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > relationship > variety > [noun] > a variant or variation variance1497 vary1600 variousness1628 varying1628 variegation1668 modification1669 diversificationa1676 variation1699 variant1849 1849 A. H. Layard Nineveh & Remains II. ii. i. 171 (note) Many of these [cuneiform] characters are undoubtedly what are termed ‘variants’; that is, merely a different way of forming the same letter. 1862 G. Rawlinson Five Great Monarchies: Chaldæa I. 143 Il, of course, is but a variant of El. 1869 A. J. Ellis On Early Eng. Pronunc. I. i. iv. 248 Other variants of course occur from carelessness. 1869 G. Rawlinson Man. Anc. Hist. 336 The names seem, however, to be chiefly variants of the general ethnic title. b. A various reading; spec. a textual variation in two or more copies of a printed work (not necessarily implying reimpression). ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > literature > literary and textual criticism > textual criticism > version of text > [noun] > reading > various reading varia lectioa1651 various lections1659 various reading(s)1659 variant1855 society > leisure > the arts > literature > literary and textual criticism > textual criticism > version of text > [noun] > reading > various reading > textual variation in two or more copies variant1927 1855 F. A. Paley in tr. Aeschylus Agamemnon in Trag. 381/2 The variants -οντο and -όντες only show that a termination was added to the original -ον. 1881 B. F. Westcott & F. J. A. Hort New Test. in Orig. Greek II. Introd. i. 3 The primary work of textual criticism is merely to discriminate the erroneous variants from the true. 1927 R. B. McKerrow Introd. Bibliogr. ii. vi. 208 Besides these added lines, The Devil's Charter exhibits a very large number of striking variants in different copies, some being mere corrections of literal errors, others important alterations in wording. 1953 C. Hinman in Shakespeare Q. IV. 280 I have been able to construct an instrument which..has enabled me to collate well over a hundred folio pages a day for some months... Taking reasonable care, the investigator can hardly fail to note any variant, however minute, in two copies of the page being examined. 1972 P. Gaskell New Introd. Bibliogr. 357 Warner Barnes..machine-collated an average of six copies of each of his author's eighteen primary editions... In ten of them he found possible evidence of concealed..reimpressions; in another four, variant states of the type not indicating reimpression... Most of the variants shown up by the machine were trivial. 2. A variation of the original work, story, song, etc. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > literature > literary and textual criticism > textual criticism > version of text > [noun] > variant version variant1872 1872 Ralston Songs Russian People 200 There are many variants of the same song, but they do not differ materially. 1877 A. B. Edwards Thousand Miles up Nile Pref. p. xiii Religious books, variants of the Ritual, moral essays, maxims. 1885 E. Clodd Myths & Dreams i. iv. 70 They are the variants of stories presumably related in the Aryan fatherland. 3. Natural History. A variant form or type. ΘΚΠ the world > life > biology > taxonomy > [noun] > variation from a type > a variant form variant1895 1895 I. K. Funk et al. Standard Dict. Eng. Lang. II. Draft additions June 2003 variant CJD n. Medicine (in full variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease) a form of spongiform encephalopathy distinguished from typical (sporadic) Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease by earlier age of onset, early psychiatric and sensory symptoms, and certain neuropathological features (esp. prominent prion protein plaques), and thought to be causally linked with bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE); abbreviated vCJD. ΚΠ 1997 Proc. National Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 94 14279/1 Investigations of the prion diseases have taken on new significance with the reports of more than 20 cases of an atypical, variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCGD) in teenagers and young adults. 1999 Lancet 2 Jan. 18 The agent that causes variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (variant CJD) is indistinguishable from the causative agent of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). 2000 Times 30 Aug. i. 9/1 Ministers believe that they must take every possible precaution to prevent the risk of patients contracting variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD). 2003 Independent (Nexis) 21 Apr. Other diseases such as variant-CJD, linked with BSE in cows,..are transmitted through food. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1916; most recently modified version published online December 2021). < adj.n.c1374
随便看	overstraining overstraining disease overstrains overstrait overstraiten overstraitly overstraitness overstream overstreaming overstrength overstress overstressed overstresses overstressing overstretch overstretched overstretches overstretching overstrew overstrewed overstrewing overstrewn overstrews overstrict overstrictly