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# variant

«variant» in Mova's school dictionary: **A slightly different form or version of something, such…** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples.

### part of speech

noun (a variant, variants); adjective (variant — formal)

### meaning for a pupil

1) A slightly different form or version of something, such as a different spelling of a word or a different version of a game. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/variant/#m1)

2) A new form of a virus or other living thing whose genes have changed a little, for example a Covid variant. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/variant/#m2)

3) (adjective, formal) Different from the usual form. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/variant/#m3)

### sense in the lessons

In spelling lessons a variant is another accepted way to write a word: "color" is the US variant of "colour". In games and puzzles a variant changes one rule. In science and the news, a variant is a changed form of a germ, which might spread faster. In maths, people may speak of a variant of a problem: the same problem with small changes. Phrases: "a variant of", "a new variant", "spelling variant".

### examples

- "Grey" and "gray" are variants of the same word. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/variant/#x1)
- We played a variant of tag where you freeze when caught. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/variant/#x2)
- Scientists are watching a new variant of the flu virus. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/variant/#x3)
- This puzzle is a variant of the one we did yesterday, with bigger numbers. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/variant/#x4)
- Chess has many variants, and some use a round board. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/variant/#x5)
- The shop sells three variants of the toy car in different colours. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/variant/#x6)
- The new variant spread quickly through the town. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/variant/#x7)

### note

Countable noun: a variant, two variants. A variant is not a completely different thing; it is the same thing changed a little. "Variant" and "variety" are related but not the same: a variety is a kind or a mix of many kinds. The verb "vary" means change; "variable" in maths is a letter that stands for a number that can change.

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «variant» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/variant/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.