homogeneity

Homogeneity is the state or quality of being homogeneous—consisting of parts or elements that are all the same.

Something described as homogeneous is uniform in nature or character throughout. Homogeneous can also be used to describe multiple things that are all essentially alike or of the same kind. It’s especially used to refer to the state of a society, culture, or situation that lacks variety or diversity. The word is often used in the context of criticism that implies that such things are biased, boring, or bland.

In the context of chemistry, homogeneous is used to describe a mixture that is uniform in structure or composition. Homogeneity can be used to refer to the state of such a mixture.

The general sense of homogeneous can be used interchangeably with the word homogenous (which is spelled without a second e and is pronounced differently). When used in this general way, homogenous is more commonly used than homogeneous. Homogeneity can be used in reference to either word.

The opposite of homogeneity is heterogeneity, which is the state of being heterogeneous—consisting of different, distinguishable parts or elements.

Example: The homogeneity of this suburb is extreme—even the houses all look the same.

The first records of the word homogeneity come from around the 1620s. It ultimately comes from the Greek homogenḗs, meaning “of the same kind,” from homo–, “same,” and génos, “kind.” The suffix -ity is used to form nouns.

Homogeneity is a state in which everything is the same kind of thing. This can apply to objects, people, and abstract things like culture and society. It’s especially used to refer to the state of a group that lacks diversity—such as a board of directors that consists entirely of white men.

What are some other forms of homogeneity?

• nonhomogeneity (noun)

What are some synonyms for homogeneity?

• homogeneousness
• uniformity
• sameness

What are some words that share a root or word element with homogeneity? 

• homogeneous
• homogenous
• homogenize
• homophone
• homonym
• heterogeneity
• genus

What are some words that often get used in discussing homogeneity?

• same
• culture
• society
• alike
• similar
• identical
• variety
• diversity

What are some words homogeneity may be commonly confused with?

• heterogeneity

The word homogeneity is most commonly used in the context of something that lacks variety or diversity.

Time to update zoning to address the mismatch between the limited types of housing allowed in most parts of our cities and the real housing needs that exist. The Suburban Lifestyle Dream was built on faulty ideas: homogeneity, exclusion, subsidized roads. https://t.co/92lQGfpDNg

— Jennifer Keesmaat (@jen_keesmaat) August 25, 2020

The author of 'The Sprawl' traveled to suburbs throughout the U.S. to try and understand how they went from being perceived as utopian enclaves to bland wastelands. He soon discovered that hackneyed ideas about the homogeneity of suburbia don’t hold up. https://t.co/CBrmpg02Rx

— Bloomberg CityLab (@CityLab) August 29, 2020

The vast majority of the 25 Fortune 1,000 companies based in #Connecticut have a CEO who is a white man. That is not a new trend, but a number of those companies have recently become more willing to talk publicly about the homogeneity in their executive levels.

— Paul Schott (@paulschott) September 1, 2020

Which of the following words is NOT a synonym of homogeneity?

A. diversity
B. uniformity
C. homogeneousness
D. sameness