multifaceted

IPA/ˌmʌltiˈfæsɪtɪd/
KK[mˌʌltifˈæsətɪd]IPA/ˌmʌltiˈfæsɪtɪd/

multifaceted — adjective

  • multifacetedpositive
  • more multifacetedcomparative
  • most multifacetedsuperlative

1. showing or made up of many different parts, qualities, or angles that all need t

1.adjectiveC1
Definition

showing or made up of many different parts, qualities, or angles that all need to be looked at together

Example

Anjali described her grandmother as a multifaceted woman who farmed, wrote poetry, and ran a small clinic.

multifaceted + person noun describing varied roles

Climate change is a multifaceted problem that touches food prices, public health, and where people choose to live.

multifaceted + abstract problem noun with examples listed

Common collocations
  • multifaceted approach
  • multifaceted problem
  • multifaceted issue
  • multifaceted role
  • multifaceted personality
  • multifaceted view
Synonyms
  • many-sided

    near-synonym; slightly less formal, often used of personalities

  • complex

    broader — emphasises difficulty rather than the existence of multiple distinct aspects

  • varied

    describes a collection of different elements but doesn't imply they belong to one whole

  • wide-ranging

    stresses breadth of scope; less about internal facets

Antonyms
  • one-dimensional

    explicit opposite — having only a single aspect or angle

  • simple

    general opposite; lacks the specific 'many distinct parts' framing

Grammar Patterns

multifaceted + noun

be multifaceted

Usage Note

Frequently attributive before abstract nouns such as approach, problem, issue, role, view, personality, character. When predicative, usually followed by a clause that lists the different parts to justify the label.

Common Mistakes

The book is multifaceted because it has many pages.
The book is multifaceted because it weaves together history, science, and personal memoir.
multifaceted refers to qualitatively different parts, not numerical quantity.
He is a multifaceted of skills.
He has a multifaceted skill set.
multifaceted is an adjective, not a noun; it modifies a noun rather than standing alone.

Word family

  • facet
    nounC1
  • faceted
    adjectiveC1
  • multifacetedness
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

All five words describe something with more than one element, but they pull in different directions. Multifaceted highlights that the different parts are angles or aspects of one unified thing — a multifaceted problem is still one problem. Many-sided is the everyday near-synonym, often used to praise a person's range of talents or interests. Complex emphasises difficulty: a complex situation may have many parts, but the focus is on how hard it is to understand or resolve. Varied points to a collection where the items are different from one another but not necessarily aspects of one whole — a varied menu has many dishes, not many facets. Wide-ranging stresses how broadly something reaches across topics or fields. So we might say: 'Erik is a many-sided musician with a multifaceted approach to composition, exploring complex rhythms and varied instruments in his wide-ranging career.'

multifaceted ↗many-sidedcomplex ↗varied ↗wide-ranging ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

  • genuinely multifaceted
  • increasingly multifaceted
  • deeply multifaceted

Phrases

  • a multifaceted approach to
  • a truly multifaceted individual

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Built from the prefix 'multi-' meaning many, plus 'faceted', the adjective form of 'facet'. Facet entered English from French 'facette' in the late 1500s, originally describing the small flat surfaces cut into a gemstone. By the 1800s 'facet' had stretched to mean any one aspect of a topic or person, and 'multifaceted' followed in the early 1900s to describe things with many such aspects.