kind of

Idioms and Phrases

Also, sort of . Rather, somewhat, as in I'm kind of hungry , or The bird looked sort of like a sparrow . [ Colloquial ; c. 1800] This usage should not be confused with a kind of or a sort of , which are much older and refer to a borderline member of a given category (as in a kind of a shelter or a sort of a bluish color ). Shakespeare had this usage in Two Gentlemen of Verona (3:1): “My master is a kind of a knave.” Also see of a kind .

Example Sentences

Providing this kind of care is complicated by the shortage of behavioral treatment professionals.

From Los Angeles Times

Worldwide, the number of displaced people has been climbing alongside what appears to be the rising severity of disasters, and research suggests that by later this century as much as one-third of civilization — billions of people — could be facing the kind of heat and drought that had prohibited most human settlement for thousands of years.

From Salon

“If we bring everyone on the planet into an American lifestyle,” he said, “there first off might not be much planet left, and at the very least, the kind of degradation that might entail would be tremendous and horrifying.”

From Salon

“This kind of completely unhinged, brutal and horrible reaction is inevitable in the conditions under which we live,” he said.

From Salon

This kind of model is not without risk, however.

From BBC

Related Words

• rather