uniform definition

English uniform definition

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French uniforme, from Latin uniformis.

Pronunciation

• (US) enPR: yo͞oʹnĭ-fôrm, IPA^(key): /ˈjunɪˌfɔɹm/, /ˈjunɪfɚm/
• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈjuːnɪfɔːm/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Hyphenation: uni‧form

Adjective

uniform (comparative more uniform, superlative most uniform)

1. Unvarying; all the same.
   • 1943 March and April, “G.W.R. Rolling Stock Colours”, in Railway Magazine, page 106:

     "Chocolate and cream," the standard colours of G.W.R. rolling stock for 21 years, are now being replaced by an all-over utility coating of reddish-brown. This is the third time that a uniform brown has been adopted as the standard livery of G.W.R. carriages.

2. Consistent; conforming to one standard.
   • 1593, Richard Hooker, Of the Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity, in 1830, The Ecclesiastical Polity and Other Works of Richard Hooker, page 313,

     The only doubt is, about the manner of their unity; how far Churches are bound to be uniform in their Ceremonies, and what way they ought to take for that purpose.

3. (mathematics) with speed of convergence not depending on choice of function argument; as in uniform continuity, uniform convergence
4. (chemistry, of a polymer) Composed of a single macromolecular species.
5. (geometry) (of a polyhedron) That is isogonal and whose faces are regular polygons; (of an n-dimensional (n>3) polytope) that is isogonal and whose bounding (n-1)-dimensional facets are uniform polytopes.

Usage notes

• As a description of polymers, the IUPAC prefers the term uniform to monodisperse.

Synonyms

• (unvarying): regular, stable; see also Thesaurus:steady
• (all the same): invariable, of a piece; see also Thesaurus:homogeneous

Antonyms

• (all the same): diverse
• nonuniform

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

uniform (plural uniforms)

1. A distinctive outfit that serves to identify members of a group.
   • 1932, Elmer Wheeler, Tested Selling Sentences (the Language of the Brain): Master Book

     The Hooverette [housedress] can be worn as a dress or as an apron.

     This is the latest in uniforms, madam, according to Vogue.

   • 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 6, in The China Governess‎^[1]:

     ‘[…] I remember a lady coming to inspect St. Mary's Home where I was brought up and seeing us all in our lovely Elizabethan uniforms we were so proud of, and bursting into tears all over us because “it was wicked to dress us like charity children”. […]’.

   • F. W. Robertson

     There are many things which a soldier will do in his plain clothes which he scorns to do in his uniform.

   • 2013 July 19, Peter Wilby, “Finland spreads word on schools”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 6, page 30:

     Imagine a country where children do nothing but play until they start compulsory schooling at age seven. Then, without exception, they attend comprehensives until the age of 16. […] There are no inspectors, no exams until the age of 18, no school league tables, no private tuition industry, no school uniforms. […]

2. (international standards) Alternative letter-case form of Uniform from the NATO/ICAO Phonetic Alphabet.
3. A uniformed police officer (as opposed to a detective).
   • 1996, S. J. Rozan, Concourse,^[2] Macmillan, →ISBN, page 265,

     Skeletor held the gun against Speedo’s head, held Speedo between himself and the cops who stood, motionless and futile, where they’d stopped. Robinson, Lindfors, Carter, three uniforms and I watched helpless as Skeletor, dragging Speedy with him, inched out the gate, started backing down the hill.

   • 2001, Christine Wiltz, The Last Madam: A Life in the New Orleans Underworld,^[3] Da Capo Press, →ISBN, page 113,

     Four men flew out of it, three uniforms and one in what appeared to be an English riding outfit—boots, whip, the whole nine yards. […] He called out, “I’m the superintendent of police.”

   • 2004, Will Christopher Baer, Penny Dreadful,^[4] MacAdam/Cage Publishing, →ISBN, page 81,

     Eyes to the front now and there was the body, a lump of black and brown. Moon counted three uniforms and a photographer, the medical examiner and his assistant.

Translations

Verb

uniform (third-person singular simple present uniforms, present participle uniforming, simple past and past participle uniformed)

1. (transitive) To clothe in a uniform.
   • 1910, Robert W. Chambers, Ailsa Paige‎^[5]:

     You can't erect an army by uniforming and drilling a few hundred thousand clerks and farmers.

Translations

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Dutch uniform definition

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French uniforme, from Latin ūnifōrmis.

Pronunciation 1

• IPA^(key): /ˈy.niˌfɔrm/
• Hyphenation: uni‧form

Noun

uniform n (plural uniformen, diminutive uniformpje n)

1. Uniform; a distinctive outfit. [from 18th c.]

Derived terms

• politie-uniform

Descendants

• Afrikaans: uniform

Pronunciation 2

• audio

  (file)

• IPA^(key): /ˌyniˈfɔrm/
• Hyphenation: uni‧form
• Rhymes: -ɔrm

Adjective

uniform (comparative uniformer, superlative uniformst)

1. Uniform. [from 16th c.]

Inflection

Inflection of uniform
uninflected	uniform
inflected	uniforme
comparative	uniformer
		positive	comparative	superlative
predicative/adverbial		uniform	uniformer	het uniformst het uniformste
indefinite	m./f. sing.	uniforme	uniformere	uniformste
	n. sing.	uniform	uniformer	uniformste
	plural	uniforme	uniformere	uniformste
definite		uniforme	uniformere	uniformste
partitive		uniforms	uniformers	—

Descendants

• Afrikaans: uniform

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Norwegian Bokmål uniform definition

Noun

uniform m or f (definite singular uniforma or uniformen, indefinite plural uniformer, definite plural uniformene)

1. a uniform

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Norwegian Nynorsk uniform definition

Noun

uniform f (definite singular uniforma, indefinite plural uniformer, definite plural uniformene)

1. a uniform

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Polish uniform definition

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /uˈɲi.fɔrm/

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ifɔrm
• Syllabification: u‧ni‧form

Noun

uniform m inan

1. (rare) uniform

   Synonyms: mundur, mundurek

Declension

Further reading

• uniform in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• uniform in Polish dictionaries at PWN

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Romanian uniform definition

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin ūnifōrmis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌu.niˈform/

Adjective

uniform m or n (feminine singular uniformă, masculine plural uniformi, feminine and neuter plural uniforme)

1. uniform

Declension

Related terms

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Swedish uniform definition

Etymology

From Latin uniformis.

Pronunciation

• audio

  (file)

Noun

uniform c

1. Uniform; a distinctive outfit.

Declension

Declension of uniform
	Singular		Plural
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Nominative	uniform	uniformen	uniformer	uniformerna
Genitive	uniforms	uniformens	uniformers	uniformernas

References

• uniform in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB) (noun)
• uniform in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB) (adjective)