Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
adjRelating or pertaining to several different cultures.
adjRelating or pertaining to groups, households or families involving persons with different or mixed ethnicities or races.
Sentence Examples
We now live in a multicultural world.
Having been raised in multilingual and multicultural environments, languages are definitely her thing.
Australia is one of the most multicultural places on Earth.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The school's ____ student body includes children from every continent, which enriches the learning environment.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
London is a very ____ city where people from many different backgrounds live and work together, creating a very rich and diverse community.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *mel-der.
Proto-Indo-European *ml̥tós?
Proto-Italic *moltos
Latin multus
Latin multīder.
Middle English multi-
English multi-
Proto-Indo-European *kʷelh₁-
Proto-Indo-European *kʷélh₁-e-ti
Proto-Italic *kʷelō
Latin colō
Proto-Indo-European *-tew-?
Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂?
Latin -tūra
Latin cultūrader.
Middle French cultureder.
English culture
Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der.?
Proto-Italic *-ālis
Latin -ālisbor.
Old French -albor.
▲
Latin -ālis
Old French -elbor.
▲
Latin -ālisbor.
Middle English -al
English -al
English multicultural
From multiculture + -al or multi- + cultural.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Viewed from the boardrooms of Britain, the market is becoming more multicultural than could have been imagined just five years ago."
— 2001 October 31, “Embracing multicultural Britain”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 26 Jun 2022:
"The literary landscape of London is as varied as the city itself. According to the 2011 census, 40 percent of residents identified as “Asian, Black, Mixed or Other.” While this is no multi-culti utopia, it is undeniably an intensely multicultural metropolis where more than 300 languages are spoken."
— 2022 October 12, Bernardine Evaristo, “Read Your Way Through London”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 11 May 2023:
"Bedgood, whose father is African American and mother is Caucasian, says he's struggling to deal with such hatred. He grew up in Santa Clarita and says he could not have imagined something like this happening in a quiet community with many multicultural families."
— 2011 March 22, “Santa Clarita man apparent target of hate crime”, in ABC13, archived from the original on 24 Jun 2021: