- a group of people or things that are the same in some way; a particular variety or type
- kind of somebody/something three kinds of cakes/cake
- What kind of house do you live in?
- They sell all kinds of things.
- I need to buy paper and pencils, that kind of thing.
- His diet's terrible—burgers, chips, pizzas, that kind of stuff.
- I'm the kind of person who hates to do anything wrong.
- We have the same kind of car.
- that kind of something I'll never have that kind of money (= as much money as that).
- He wouldn't say anything about it. He's not that kind of man.
- this kind of something This kind of exercise is very popular.
- of a kind Exercises of this kind are very popular.
- music of all/various/different kinds
- The school is the first of its kind in Britain.
- Would you like a drink of some kind?
- The regions differ in size, but not in kind.
Grammar Point kind / sortkind / sort- Use the singular (kind/sort) or plural (kinds/sorts) depending on the word you use before them:
- each/one/every kind of animal
- all/many/other sorts of animals.
- Kind/sort of is followed by a singular or uncountable noun:
- This kind of question often appears in the exam.
- That sort of behaviour is not acceptable.
- Kinds/sorts of is followed by a plural or uncountable noun:
- These kinds of questions often appear in the exam.
- These sorts of behaviour are not acceptable.
- Other variations are possible but less common:
- These kinds of question often appear in the exam.
- These sort of things don’t happen in real life.
- Note also that these examples are possible, especially in spoken English:
- The shelf was full of the sort of books I like to read.
- He faced the same kind of problems as his predecessor.
- There are many different sorts of animal on the island.
- What kind of camera is this?
- What kind/kinds of cameras do you sell?
- There were three kinds of cakes/cake on the plate.
Extra Examples- Be sure to eat enough of the right kind of food.
- I missed him, in a funny kind of way.
- I'm a fairly normal kind of guy.
- Prostate cancer is the most common kind of cancer in men.
- You need some kind of cover over it to protect it from the rain.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- different
- same
- similar
- …
- in kind
- of a kind
- of… kind
- …
- a/the kind of thing
- a… kind of way
- nothing of the kind
- …
Word Originnoun Old English cynd(e), gecynd(e), of Germanic origin; related to kin. The original sense was ‘nature, the natural order’, also ‘innate character, form, or condition’ (compare with the adjective kind); hence ‘a class ’or‘ race distinguished by innate characteristics’.Want to learn more?
Find out which words work together and produce more natural sounding English with the Oxford Collocations Dictionary app.
Idioms
See kind in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee kind in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic Englishin kind
- (of a payment) consisting of goods or services, not money
- As well as his salary, he gets benefits in kind.
- (formal) with the same thing
- She insulted him and he responded in kind.
a kind of
- (informal) used to show that something you are saying is not exact
- I had a kind of feeling this might happen.
kind of
/ˈkaɪndə/
/ˈkaɪndə/
(also kinda)
(informal)- slightly; in some ways
- That made me feel kind of stupid.
- I like him, kind of.
nothing of the kind/sort
- used to emphasize that the situation is very different from what has been said
- ‘I was terrible!’ ‘You were nothing of the kind.’
of a kind
- (disapproving) not as good as it could be
- You're making progress of a kind.
- very similar
- They're two of a kind—both workaholics!
one of a kind
- the only one like this synonym unique
- My father was one of a kind—I'll never be like him.
something of the/that kind
- something like what has been said
- ‘He's resigning.’ ‘I'd suspected something of the kind.’
Check pronunciation:
kind