individual

Pluralindividuals

1. 1
   nouncountable

   A single person considered on their own, rather than as part of a group or as an organization such as a company.

   The survey asked each individual about their daily habits.

   Society is made up of individuals with different needs and goals.

   UsageSounds more official than person; often with an adjective that judges: an unusual individual.

   Similarperson

   Note

   Beyond simply counting heads, the word can size a person up. In Priya Krishna's "The Customized Drink Is Out of Control" (2024), a saleswoman says "You have to be an individual," meaning someone with distinctive tastes who won't settle for plain black coffee. In that phrase, being an individual is a quality you show, not a fact you count. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

   • Priya Krishna wrote “The Customized Drink Is Out of Control”, published in 2024. en.wiktionary.org
   • A saleswoman says the quoted words; her next sentence supports the interpretation about rejecting plain black coffee. edition.pagesuite.com
2. 2
   adjective

   Relating to, belonging to, or meant for one person or thing considered separately rather than a group.

   The report breaks down spending by individual department.

   Teachers track the progress of each individual learner.

   UsageComes before the noun, often after each or every: each individual learner.

   Similarsingle, separate, personal

   Oppositecollective, joint, shared, communal

3. 3
   population membernouncountable

   Any single member that belongs to a population.

   The sample included one hundred individuals drawn from the wider population.

   Each individual in the dataset was recorded with a unique identifier.

   Similarmember, subject, case

   Note

   Statistics uses the word for its basic unit: the single member of a population or sample on which an observation or measurement is recorded. The individual need not be a person. Whatever belongs to the population under study qualifies, so the word travels naturally with population and sample in this sense. Source

   Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts

   • An individual is a unit on which observations or measurements are made. sjsu.edu
   • A statistical individual can be something other than a person. coconino.edu
   • Membership in the population under study qualifies something as an individual. people.stat.sc.edu
4. 4
   adjective

   Strikingly unusual, with a character or style that is clearly its own.

   The chef's cooking is highly individual, blending flavors few others would think to combine.

   His handwriting is so individual that friends recognize his letters at a glance.

   Similardistinctive, original, unique, idiosyncratic

   Oppositeconventional, ordinary

   Note

   Only this meaning of the adjective takes very, highly or so, and only here does more individual make sense. That is the quick test against the "for one person" meaning: individual portions are simply single, while a very individual style is distinctive. Said of style, taste, cooking or handwriting, it usually reads as praise, gentler than eccentric.

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