category

noun

cat·​e·​go·​ry ˈka-tə-ˌgȯr-ē 

plural categories

1

: any of several fundamental and distinct classes to which entities or concepts belong

Taxpayers fall into one of several categories.

2

: a division within a system of classification

She competed for the award in her age category.

Synonyms

• type
• kind

Examples of category in a Sentence

The cars belong to the same category.

Taxpayers fall into one of several categories.

She competed for the award in her age category.

Recent Examples on the Web

In the Pilots category, the Grand Jury Prize went to Bulldozer, written by and starring Joanna Leeds, and directed by Andrew Leeds. —Matt Grobar, Deadline, 7 Aug. 2025

The smart glasses category is anchored by devices like Meta Ray-Bans, Xreal, and Viture. —Charlie Fink, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2025

The salad tomato category encompasses hundreds of varieties ranging from bite-sized fruit the size of a marble to tomatoes as large as a ping pong ball. —Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 7 Aug. 2025

On his orders, agencies have buried climate data, rewritten history, redefined categories and definitions (most notably of gender), cut research, and undermined or eliminated independent auditors. —Fergus McIntosh, New Yorker, 6 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Late Latin categoria, from Greek katēgoria predication, category, from katēgorein to accuse, affirm, predicate, from kata- + agora public assembly, from ageirein to gather

First Known Use

1588, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for category

• allegory
• amatory
• auditory
• clerestory
• crematory
• desultory
• dilatory
• dormitory
• excretory
• extempore
• feudatory
• gustatory

Kids Definition

category

noun

cat·​e·​go·​ry ˈkat-ə-ˌgōr-ē 

-ˌgȯr-

plural categories

1

: one of the divisions or groupings used in a system of classification

"species" and "genus" are biological categories

2

: class entry 1 sense 3a, kind