VARY • E-FREE TRANSLATION.COM • Definition of Vary

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/vˈɛri/ Listen

verb

Vary v. t. (past & past part. varied; pres. part. varying)

1.

To change the aspect of; to alter in form, appearance, substance, position, or the like; to make different by a partial change; to modify; as, to vary the properties, proportions, or nature of a thing; to vary a posture or an attitude; to vary one's dress or opinions. "Shall we vary our device at will, Even as new occasion appears?"

2.

To change to something else; to transmute; to exchange; to alternate. "Gods, that never change their state, Vary oft their love and hate." "We are to vary the customs according to the time and country where the scene of action lies."

3.

To make of different kinds; to make different from one another; to diversify; to variegate. "God hath varied their inclinations." "God hath here Varied his bounty so with new delights."

4.

(Mus.) To embellish; to change fancifully; to present under new aspects, as of form, key, measure, etc. See Variation, 4.

Vary v. i.

1.

To alter, or be altered, in any manner; to suffer a partial change; to become different; to be modified; as, colors vary in different lights. "That each from other differs, first confess; Next, that he varies from himself no less."

2.

To differ, or be different; to be unlike or diverse; as, the laws of France vary from those of England.

3.

To alter or change in succession; to alternate; as, one mathematical quantity varies inversely as another. "While fear and anger, with alternate grace, Pant in her breast, and vary in her face."

4.

To deviate; to depart; to swerve; followed by from; as, to vary from the law, or from reason.

5.

To disagree; to be at variance or in dissension; as, men vary in opinion. "The rich jewel which we vary for."

noun

Vary n. Alteration; change. (Obs.)

See images of 'Vary'

Etymology of 'Vary'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Vary" Quotes from Famous Books

... is the nosegay: how simple it shines! It speaks without words to the ear and the eye; The flowers of the Spring are the best valentines; They are young, fair, and simple, and pleasingly shy. That you may remain so and your love never vary, I send you these ...

— Life and Remains of John Clare - "The Northamptonshire Peasant Poet" • J. L. Cherry

... composers of these songs are the recognized judges in all disputed matters; and as they are often priests, and believed to be inspired, it is probably in this way that the notion of the divine origin of poetry first arose. These ballads will of course vary according to the customs and temperaments of the different nations, and according to the climate to which they are accustomed. In the south they assume a passionate and voluptuous form; in the north they are rather remarkable for their tragic and warlike character. But notwithstanding ...

— Library Of The World's Best Literature, Ancient And Modern, Vol 6 • Various

... other American monkeys—but as they have four fewer true molars, the total remains the same. And passing from the American apes to the Lemurs, the dentition becomes still more completely and essentially different from that of the Gorilla. The incisors begin to vary both in number and in form. The molars acquire, more and more, a many-pointed, insectivorous character, and in one Genus, the Aye-Aye ('Cheiromys'), the canines disappear, and the teeth completely simulate those of ...

— On the Relations of Man to the Lower Animals • Thomas H. Huxley

... relief to these grand doings, Manabozho was disposed to vary his experiences by bestowing a little time upon the sports of the woods. He had heard reported great feats in hunting, and he had a desire to try his power in that way. Besides that, it was a slight consideration that he had devoured all the game within ...

— The Indian Fairy Book - From the Original Legends • Cornelius Mathews

... grandchildren seem not to have been attracted by their six-fingered cousins. In other words, in the one example a race was produced, because, for several generations, care was taken to 'select' both parents of the breeding stock from animals exhibiting a tendency to vary in the same condition; while, in the other, no race was evolved, because no such selection was exercised. A race is a propagated variety; and as, by the laws of reproduction, offspring tend to assume the parental ...

— The Origin of Species - From 'The Westminster Review', April 1860 • Thomas H. Huxley

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