particularity
/pəˌtɪkjəˈlærəti/ (bre, ipa) · /pərˌtɪkjəˈlærəti/ (ame, ipa) · /pər-ˌti-kyə-ˈler-ə-tē pə-, -ˈla-rə- also (ˌ)pär-/ (ame, mw)
particularity — noun
1. careful focus on small, exact information, especially when describing or recordi
careful focus on small, exact information, especially when describing or recording something so that nothing important is missed.
Noor described the antique vase with such particularity that the buyer felt no need to inspect it in person.
describe with particularity — formal phrasing
The auditor recorded every receipt with particularity, listing the date, vendor, and amount on each line.
record with particularity — typical audit/legal collocation
Yasmin's notes lacked the particularity her supervisor expected, omitting the time stamps and room numbers.
William explained the new rules with such particularity that even the youngest students could follow each step.
- precision
precision stresses accuracy of measurement; particularity stresses the inclusion of small details.
- exactness
exactness is more general; particularity emphasises full coverage of small points.
- thoroughness
thoroughness is informal and broader; particularity is formal and detail-focused.
- vagueness
vagueness is the opposite — lack of clear small details.
文法句型
the particularity of [something]
用法筆記
Frequently appears in the phrase 'with particularity', especially in legal, financial, and academic writing. Object of the particularity is what is being described or recorded, not the describer.
常見錯誤
2. small, specific points that together make up the full picture of a situation, ca
small, specific points that together make up the full picture of a situation, case, or subject.
Gabriel asked about the particularities of the rental contract before signing anything.
the particularities of [a document or case]
The judge asked the lawyer to set out the particularities of the claim in writing.
set out the particularities of — legal register
Marco walked the new hire through the particularities of the office filing system.
Astrid found the particularities of Swedish grammar confusing at first, especially the rules around definite endings.
- details
details is the everyday equivalent; particularities is formal and stresses smallness or specificity.
- specifics
specifics is similar in meaning and slightly less formal.
- fine points
fine points emphasises subtle items; particularities can also include routine small items.
- generalities
generalities are broad statements that ignore the small points.
文法句型
the particularities of [something]
用法筆記
Almost always plural in this sense. Distinguish from sense 1 (uncountable, the quality) — here the word names the small points themselves, not the careful manner.
常見錯誤
3. the feature or set of features that makes a person, place, or thing different fr
the feature or set of features that makes a person, place, or thing different from every other one.
The chef built the menu around the particularity of each season's local vegetables.
the particularity of [something]
Imran's poems capture the particularity of small fishing towns along the Indian coast.
One particularity of the Hui language is its long history of loanwords from Persian and Arabic.
Élise loved the particularity of her grandmother's village, where every house wore a different shade of blue.
- distinctiveness
distinctiveness emphasises being recognisably different; close synonym.
- uniqueness
uniqueness stresses one-of-a-kind; particularity allows several distinguishing traits.
- individuality
individuality is more often used of people; particularity works for places and things too.
- uniformity
uniformity is the lack of distinguishing traits across a group.
文法句型
the particularity of [someone or something]
用法筆記
Often appears with definite article ('the particularity of X') when naming what makes X distinctive. Can be countable when listing several distinguishing traits (sense 3 example 3).