| ̷ ̷( ̷ ̷) ̷ ̷|jēnēəs, -nyəs, Brit sometimes -|jen- adjective
Etymology: Medieval Latin heterogeneus, from Greek heterogenēs, from hetero- heter- + -genēs born — more at -gen
1. : differing in kind
a heterogeneous population — L.W.Doob
genetically heterogeneous
2. : consisting of dissimilar ingredients or constituents
heterogeneous substances
a town may be culturally or economically heterogeneous — Notes & Queries on Anthropology
: having different values, opinions, or backgrounds
the family is heterogeneous enough to make quite a good party in itself — Rose Macaulay
3.
a. : made up of parts or elements that are not unified, compatible, or proportionate
no heterogeneous hotchpotch but a book with an underlying unity — Roger Pippett
b. : incapable of comparison in respect to magnitude : being incommensurable
volume and area are heterogeneous quantities
4. : having different genders in the singular and plural number
Latin locus “place”, which is masculine but has a neuter plural loca, is a heterogeneous noun
5. : possessed of unlike quality or meanings : disparate
not all the artists who painted … him from life were competent, and their results are heterogeneous — J.C.Fitzpatrick
6. : not uniform in structure or composition
the heterogeneous earth
a heterogeneous weld
tumors which have a heterogeneous composition by reason of structure and presence of necrosis — Year Book of Endocrinology
the beam of x ray is not … monochromatic but heterogeneous , containing wavelengths over a large range — Medical Physics
7. : relating to or occurring in or being a system that is not uniform throughout but consists of phases separated by boundaries (as solid-solid phases, solid-liquid phases, or solid-liquid-vapor phases)
heterogeneous reaction
• het·er·o·ge·neous·ly adverb
• het·er·o·ge·neous·ness noun -es