1 multivalent | Definition of multivalent

multivalent

adjective
mul·​ti·​va·​lent | \ ˌməl-tē-ˈvā-lənt How to pronounce multivalent (audio) , -ˌtī- How to pronounce multivalent (audio) , especially in sense 3 ˌməl-ˈti-və- How to pronounce multivalent (audio) \

Definition of multivalent

2 : represented more than twice in the somatic chromosome number multivalent chromosomes
3 : having many values, meanings, or appeals

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Other Words from multivalent

multivalent noun

Examples of multivalent in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The reality is that the Joker already had a multivalent political identity, long before this new movie was conceived. Josephine Livingstone, The New Republic, "Is Joker Just a Movie?," 5 Sep. 2019 It’s more accurate to see them as manifestations of a lifetime’s voracious, multivalent reading and looking—inventive mental collages or marvelous pastiches of unimaginably wide-ranging sources. Karen Wilkin, WSJ, "‘Born to Be Posthumous’ Review: Peculiar, Cynical, Ironic & Witty," 21 Dec. 2018 The dissonance between the soap-bubble gleam of the ideal and the jagged loneliness that lies within is the animating force at the heart of this touchingly multivalent work. Jeremy Eichler, BostonGlobe.com, "Behind the white picket fence, portraits of a jagged loneliness," 13 May 2018 Beyond the realm of VH1, drag is a multivalent art form with a complex and stratified history. Wilder Davies, Time, "RuPaul’s Drag Race and What People Get Wrong About the History of Drag," 9 Mar. 2018 Both women’s ambitious works take on multivalent subjects challenging to render in movement. Claudia Bauer, San Francisco Chronicle, "ODC premieres take on the world," 31 Jan. 2018 Carrington has become a multivalent force in recent decades as a Berklee College of Music professor, producer, entrepreneur and Grammy Award-winning bandleader who’s turned her focus to creating opportunities for women instrumentalists. Andrew Gilbert, The Mercury News, "High-flying Wayne Shorter brings famed quartet to San Francisco," 26 Apr. 2017 China Miéville is one of those fiction writers whose multivalent imagination — with its monsters, cityscapes of the future, and battles between good and evil — is capable of making readers’ heads explode. John Williams, New York Times, "Tell Us 5 Things About Your Book: China Miéville on the Russian Revolution," 7 May 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'multivalent.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of multivalent

1863, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for multivalent

International Scientific Vocabulary

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More Definitions for multivalent

multivalent

adjective
mul·​ti·​va·​lent | \ ˌməl-ti-ˈvā-lənt How to pronounce multivalent (audio) , -ˌtī- How to pronounce multivalent (audio) \

Medical Definition of multivalent

 (Entry 1 of 2)

2 : represented more than twice in the somatic chromosome number multivalent chromosomes

multivalent

noun

Medical Definition of multivalent (Entry 2 of 2)

: a multivalent group of chromosomes

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Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with multivalent