Arbitrary vs Myriad - What's the difference?
arbitrary | myriad |
(usually, of a decision) Based on individual discretion or judgment; not based on any objective distinction, perhaps even made at random.
Determined by impulse rather than reason; heavy-handed.
(mathematics) Any and all possible.
Determined by independent arbiter.
Anything arbitrary, such as an arithmetical value or a fee.
A countless number or multitude (of specified things)
(modifying a singular noun) Multifaceted, having innumerable elements
* 1931 , William Faulkner, Sanctuary , Vintage 1993, p. 131:
* 2011' April 6–19, Kara Krekeler, "Researchers at Washington U. have 'itch' to cure problem", ''West End Word'', ' 40 (7), p. 8:
(modifying a plural noun) Great in number; innumerable, multitudinous
* 2013 September 28, , "
As adjectives the difference between arbitrary and myriad
is that arbitrary is based on individual discretion or judgment; not based on any objective distinction, perhaps even made at random while myriad is multifaceted, having innumerable elements.As nouns the difference between arbitrary and myriad
is that arbitrary is anything arbitrary, such as an arithmetical value or a fee while myriad is ten thousand; 10,000.arbitrary
English
Adjective
(arbitrariness) (en adjective)- Benjamin Franklin's designation of "positive" and "negative" to different charges was arbitrary . In fact, electrons flow in the opposite direction to conventional current.
- The decision to use 18 years as the legal age of adulthood was arbitrary , as both age 17 and 19 were reasonable alternatives.
- "The Russian trials were Stalin's purges, with which he attempted to consolidate his power. Like most people in the West, I believed these show trials to be the arbitrary acts of a cruel dictator." (
Max Born, Letters to Einstein
)
- The equation is true for an arbitrary value of x.
- To secure food safety, there should first be a national standard to arbitrarily state what is wholesome and what is not; second, the final buyer should know exactly what he is purchasing. (
The World's Work ...: a history of our time
)
Noun
(arbitraries)External links
* *myriad
English
(wikipedia myriad)Noun
(en noun)- Earth hosts a myriad of animals.
Usage notes
Used as an adjective (see below), 'myriad' requires neither an article before it nor a preposition after. Because of this, some consider the usage described in sense 2 above, where 'myriad' acts as part of a nominal (or noun) group (that is, "a myriad of animals"), to be tautological.Adjective
(-)- one night he would be singing at the barred window and yelling down out of the soft myriad darkness of a May night; the next night he would be gone [...].
- "As a clinician, it's a difficult symptom to treat," Cornelius said. "The end symptom may be the same, but what's causing it may be myriad ."
- Earth hosts myriad animals.
London Is Special, but Not That Special," New York Times (retrieved 28 September 2013):
- Driven by a perceived political need to adopt a hard-line stance, Mr. Cameron’s coalition government has imposed myriad new restrictions, the aim of which is to reduce net migration to Britain to below 100,000.
