particular

English

Alternative forms

• perticular (obsolete)

Etymology

Borrowed from Anglo-Norman particuler, Middle French particuler, particulier, from Late Latin particularis (“partial; separate, individual”), from Latin particula (“(small) part”). Compare particle.

Pronunciation

• (rhotic) IPA^(key): /pɚˈtɪkjəlɚ/
• (non-rhotic) IPA^(key): /pəˈtɪkjələ/
• (US, rhotic, r-dissimilation) IPA^(key): /pəˈtɪkjəlɚ/
• Hyphenation: par‧tic‧u‧lar

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Adjective

particular (comparative more particular, superlative most particular) (also non-comparable)

1. (obsolete) Pertaining only to a part of something; partial.
2. Specific; discrete; concrete.

   I couldn't find the particular model you asked for, but I hope this one will do.

   We knew it was named after John Smith, but nobody knows which particular John Smith.

   • c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene v]:

     I could a tale unfold whose lightest word
     Would harrow up thy soul, freeze thy young blood,
     Make thy two eyes, like stars, start from their spheres,
     Thy knotted and combined locks to part
     And each particular hair to stand on end

3. Specialised; characteristic of a specific person or thing.

   I don't appreciate your particular brand of cynicism.

   • (Can we date this quote by Francis Bacon and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?)

     wheresoever one plant draweth such a particular juice out of the earth

   Synonyms: optimized, specialistic

4. (obsolete) Known only to an individual person or group; confidential.
   • 1623, William Shakespeare, King Lear, V.1:

     or these domesticke and particular broiles, Are not the question heere.

5. Distinguished in some way; special (often in negative constructions).

   My five favorite places are, in no particular order, New York, Chicago, Paris, San Francisco and London.

   I didn't have any particular interest in the book.

   He brought no particular news.

   She was the particular belle of the party.

6. (comparable) Of a person, concerned with, or attentive to, details; minute; precise; fastidious.

   He is very particular about his food and if it isn't cooked to perfection he will send it back.

   Women are more particular about their appearance.

7. Concerned with, or attentive to, details; minute; circumstantial; precise.

   a full and particular account of an accident

8. (law) Containing a part only; limited.

   a particular estate, or one precedent to an estate in remainder

9. (law) Holding a particular estate.

   a particular tenant

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Blackstone to this entry?)

10. (logic) Forming a part of a genus; relatively limited in extension; affirmed or denied of a part of a subject.

    a particular proposition, opposed to "universal", e.g. (particular affirmative) "Some men are wise"; (particular negative) "Some men are not wise".

Synonyms

• (specific; discrete; concrete): See also Thesaurus:specific
• (of a person, concerned with details): See also Thesaurus:fastidious
• (concerned with details): See also Thesaurus:meticulous

Antonyms

• general

Derived terms

• antiparticularism
• antiparticularist
• particularism
• particularity
• particularize
• particularly

 

Related terms

• in particular
• particular average
• particular Church
• particular integral
• particulars (pl.)

 

Translations

partial — see partial

specific; discrete; concrete

• Finnish: nimenomainen, yksittäinen (fi)
• German: speziell (de), bestimmt (de), spezifisch (de), genau (de), einzeln (de)
• Hungarian: konkrét (hu), bizonyos (hu)
• Irish: sonrach
• Kurdish:

  Sorani:

• Latin: speciālis
• Malay: tertentu
• Maori: tētahi
• Norwegian: bestemt
• Portuguese: específico (pt), particular (pt)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Quechua: waki
• Romanian: particular (ro) m or n
• Russian: конкре́тный (ru) (konkrétnyj), отде́льный (ru) (otdélʹnyj), ча́стный (ru) (částnyj)
• Scottish Gaelic: air leth
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: спецѝфичан, појѐдӣнӣ, ко̀нкретан

  Roman: specìfičan (sh), pojèdīnī (sh), kònkretan (sh)

• Spanish: particular (es)
• Telugu: ప్రత్యేక (te) (pratyēka)

specialised; characteristic of a specific person or thing

• Finnish: erityinen (fi), ominainen (fi)
• German: besonders (de), besonderer (de), charakteristisch (de), spezifisch (de), speziell (de)
• Latin: proprius (la)
• Portuguese: próprio (pt), particular (pt)
• Romanian: particular (ro) m or n, specific (ro) m or n, caracteristic (ro) m or n
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Russian: характерный (ru) (xarakternyj), специфи́ческий (ru) (specifíčeskij), осо́бый (ru) (osóbyj)
• Scottish Gaelic: air leth
• Ukrainian: специфі́чний (specyfíčnyj), особли́вий (osoblývyj)

known only to an individual person or group — see confidential

distinguished in some way; special

• Bengali: বিশেষ (biśeś)
• Finnish: erityinen (fi)
• German: bestimmt (de), besonderer (de), speziell (de), besonders (de), herausgehoben (de), spezifisch (de)
• Malay: tertentu
• Portuguese: especial (pt)
• Romanian: special (ro) m or n
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Russian: специа́льный (ru) (speciálʹnyj), осо́бенный (ru) (osóbennyj)
• Scottish Gaelic: air leth
• Sorbian:

  Lower Sorbian: wósebny

• Ukrainian: спеціа́льний (uk) (speciálʹnyj), особли́вий (osoblývyj)

of a person, concerned with, or attentive to, details

• Finnish: pikkutarkka (fi), tarkka (fi)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• German: sorgfältig (de), penibel (de), genau (de), pingelig (de), eigen (de), wählerisch (de), anspruchsvoll (de), etepetete (de),

concerned with, or attentive to, details; minute; precise; fastidious

• Finnish: yksityiskohtainen (fi), tarkka (fi)
• German: eigen (de), kleinlich (de), wählerisch (de), genau (de), minutiös (de), wählerisch (de), penibel (de), pingelig (de), sorgfältig (de)
• Irish: meonúil
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Portuguese: minucioso (pt)
• Russian: разборчивый (ru) (razborčivyj), щепетильный (ru) (ščepetilʹnyj), привере́дливый (ru) (priverédlivyj)

legal: containing a part only

• Finnish: osittainen (fi)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

legal: holding a particular estate

• Finnish: osa- (fi) (e.g. particular tenant - "osavuokralainen")
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

logic: forming a part of a genus

• Finnish: erityinen (fi), partikulaari (fi)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Dutch: ^{(please verify)} specifiek (nl) (1), ^{(please verify)} bepaald (nl) (1), ^{(please verify)} nauwkeurig (nl) (2), ^{(please verify)} nauwgezet (nl) (2), ^{(please verify)} precies (nl) (2)
• Esperanto: ^{(please verify)} speciala (eo) (1)
• Irish: ^{(please verify)} cuntasach
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Norman: ^{(please verify)} partitchulyi (Jersey)
• Turkish: ^{(please verify)} tikel (tr) (1), ^{(please verify)} kısmi (tr) (2)

Further reading

• “particular”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.

Noun

particular (plural particulars)

1. A small individual part of something larger; a detail, a point. [from 15th c.]
2. (obsolete) A person's own individual case. [16th-19th c.]
   • Template:RQ:Florio Montaigne Essayes
   • (Can we date this quote?) Whole Duty of Man

     temporal blessings, whether such as concern the public […] or such as concern our particular

3. (now philosophy, chiefly in plural) A particular case; an individual thing as opposed to a whole class. (Opposed to generals, universals.) [from 17th c.]
   • 1912, Bertrand Russel, The Problems of Philosophy, Chapter 9:

     When we examine common words, we find that, broadly speaking, proper names stand for particulars, while other substantives, adjectives, prepositions, and verbs stand for universals.

Related terms

• universal
• for one's particular

Translations

small part

• Finnish: yksityiskohta (fi)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

person's own individual case

• Finnish: yksilö (fi)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

philosophy: individual thing as opposed to a whole class

• Finnish: partikulaari (fi)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

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Catalan

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin particularis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [pər.ti.kuˈla]
• IPA^(key): (Valencian) [paɾ.ti.kuˈlaɾ]

Adjective

particular m or f (masculine and feminine plural particulars)

1. private
2. particular

Derived terms

• particularment

Related terms

• partícula
• particularitat

Further reading

• “particular” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “particular”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2024
• “particular” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “particular” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

---

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin particulāris, corresponding to partícula +‎ -ar.

Pronunciation

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /pɐɾ.ti.ku.ˈlaɾ/
• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /paʁ.ˌt͡ʃi.ku.ˈlaʁ/
• Hyphenation: par‧ti‧cu‧lar

Adjective

1. private (concerning, accessible or belonging to an individual person or group)
   • 2003, J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter e a Ordem da Fênix [Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix] (Harry Potter; 5), Rio de Janeiro: Rocco, →ISBN, page 400:

     Não devia estar num quarto particular?

     Shouldn't he be in a private room?

2. private (not belonging to the government)

   Synonym: privado

   Antonym: público

3. particular; specific

   Synonym: específico

4. particular; distinguished; exceptional

   Synonym: excepcional

Derived terms

• em particular

Related terms

• partícula

---

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin particulāris.

Adjective

particular m or f (masculine and feminine plural particulares)

1. specific, particular
2. personal
3. private

Related terms

• partícula