noun
miscellany
MISS-uh-lay-nee/ˈmɪsəleɪni/
A collection of varied things or writings.
The drawer holds a miscellany of photographs, shells, keys, and stamps.
Etymology
Latin miscellanea originally meant a meat hash or hodgepodge, then writing on assorted subjects. That image of unlike ingredients gathered together survives in a miscellany of objects or writings.
In context
so there was a miscellany of religious cults and practices that took hold in rome with little or no repression or persecution
More examples
- The magazine publishes a monthly miscellany of essays and poems.
- Her talk offers a miscellany of facts about local history.
- Several miscellanies of early American writing sit on the shelf.
Forms
miscellany · miscellanies
miscellaneous adjective — Made up of varied, unrelated things.
Similar words
- assortment
- Often groups different varieties within one general category.
- anthology
- Specifically collects selected writings, rather than varied objects or facts.