Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Having the same origin; derived from the same source; homogenetic: distinguished from homoplastic.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective (Biol.) Having a resemblance in structure, due to descent from a common progenitor with subsequent modification; homogenetic; -- applied both to animals and plants. See homoplastic.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective biology Having the same genetic structure; exhibiting homogeny
  • adjective proscribed Alternative form of homogeneous.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective all of the same or similar kind or nature

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Prefix homo- + gene + -ous

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Examples

  • The local cultures of most, if not all, means metros have facilitated the establishment of many loose connections among people of diverse talents, lifestyles, and social circles (as opposed to a few tight connections within homogenous groups).

    Where the Brains Are 2006

  • The local cultures of most, if not all, means metros have facilitated the establishment of many loose connections among people of diverse talents, lifestyles, and social circles (as opposed to a few tight connections within homogenous groups).

    Where the Brains Are 2006

  • Way back in homogenous 20s and 30s England, when the exotic (but relatively tiny) immigrant quarters of London, with their Jews, Russians, Letts and seafaring communities provided colour for a generation of crime and adventure writers, from Dorothy L Sayers to Dornford Yates, the Jews were about the most exotic 'other' that existed ...

    Archive 2004-08-01 Laban 2004

  • The most disruptive thing about the Internet is its ability to locate you in homogenous communities that embrace the same values as you, so that there's no dialectic in socail pressure: IOW, you can spend all your time in alt. underwear.on.my.head and never get the funny looks that would cause you to reconsider your fashion choices.

    Boing Boing: January 26, 2003 - February 1, 2003 Archives 2003

  • You can't see the different between two substance its called homogenous mixture.

    Recently Uploaded Slideshows anotnysavio 2009

  • Commenter David used the word homogenous in his assertion that Berkeley and San Francisco lacked true demographic diversity.

    Fritinancy 2008

  • GM and other makers are also trying to develop a gas engine using a technology called homogenous-charge compression-ignition, or HCCI.

    Gas Engines Get Upgrade in Challenge to Hybrids 2009

  • For the next three decades Japanese administrators and segments of the Okinawan intelligentsia urged the “reform” of the Okinawan character through the purgation, right down to un-Japanese sneezes, of cultural elements that diverged from what were described as the homogenous norms of the “main islands.”

    Karate and Modernity: A Call for Comments 2005

  • For the next three decades Japanese administrators and segments of the Okinawan intelligentsia urged the “reform” of the Okinawan character through the purgation, right down to un-Japanese sneezes, of cultural elements that diverged from what were described as the homogenous norms of the “main islands.”

    井の中の蛙 » Karate and Modernity: A Call for Comments » Print 2005

  • For the next three decades Japanese administrators and segments of the Okinawan intelligentsia urged the “reform” of the Okinawan character through the purgation, right down to un-Japanese sneezes, of cultural elements that diverged from what were described as the homogenous norms of the “main islands.”

    Updates: Textbook and Constitutional revision 2005

Comments

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  • On the radio, in the last day, I have heard 3 different speakers in from varying backgrounds pronounce this as homo-GENIUS. Am I missing something?

    January 29, 2009

  • All men are born equal.(-:

    January 29, 2009

  • Perhaps they were saying homogeneous?

    January 29, 2009

  • I believe Pro is correct--his spelling, which is an alternate of this word, is usually pronounced "genius" at the end, whereas in this spelling the second syllable is stressed.

    January 29, 2009

  • In the original meanings of these two words, 'homogenous' (stress on -mog-) meant "coming from the same source", and 'homogeneous' (stress -gen-, with extra syllable as in 'genius') meant "composed of similar parts". The OED (Second edition, not recently revised) comments that 'The spelling homogenous is less common than the pronunc. (hə'mɒdɪnəs), which perh. owes its currency partly to the influence of the vb. homogenize and its derivs.', and then gives a large number of examples.

    If you look at Google (e.g. for "homogenous mixture") you can see clearly that the two words are not clearly distinguished in Present-day English. The two spellings at least seem equally common (and the "mixture" meaning is far more common and familiar than the "same origin" one, I think), so presumably the two pronunciations co-exist in this meaning.

    January 29, 2009