variant

American  

[vair-ee-uhnt] / ˈvɛər i ənt /

adjective

1. tending to change or alter; exhibiting variety or diversity; varying.

   variant shades of color.

2. not agreeing or conforming; differing, especially from something of the same general kind.

3. not definitive, as a version of part of a text; different; alternative.

   a variant reading.

4. not universally accepted.

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noun

1. a person or thing that varies.

2. a different spelling, pronunciation, or form of the same word.

   “Vehemency” is a variant of “vehemence.”

3. Microbiology, Pathology. a form of a virus, bacterium, or other microorganism that arises from a strain of the microorganism when a mutation changes a small part of the strain’s genetic code.

variant British  

/ ˈvɛərɪənt /

adjective

1. liable to or displaying variation

2. differing from a standard or type

   a variant spelling

3. obsolete not constant; fickle

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noun

1. something that differs from a standard or type

2. statistics another word for variate

Other Word Forms

• nonvariant adjective
• unvariant adjective

Etymology

Origin of variant

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English variaunt(e), variant(e) “undergoing change, tending to change, changeable,” from Old French, from Latin variant-, stem of variāns, present participle of variāre “to mark or adorn with different colors”; various; -ant

Explanation

A variant is another version of something. You could say chimps and apes and gorillas are variants in the primate family. Words often have variants, spellings that vary from region to region or country to country. The British colour and the American color are variants. When a movie or TV show is remade or casts a new actor — like with the string of James Bonds — you could call those movies variants. Where there are variants, there is variety — things aren't all the same.

Example Sentences

The team initially expected that individuals with the PAM variant would have lower GLP-1 levels, possibly because the hormone would be less stable without proper processing.

From Science Daily • Apr. 12, 2026

Emek posters are printed in the low hundreds for a festival serving tens of thousands, and sold for $150 to $250 depending on the variant.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026

People with GLP1R variants lost up to about 3.3 pounds more than those who didn’t have the variant and were more likely to experience vomiting and nausea.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026

It is also unknown how widespread this particular variant is.

From BBC • Mar. 27, 2026

This is the preferred spelling, though dictionaries now accept sherbert as a variant.

From "Woe Is I" by Patricia T. O'Conner

Related Words

• modification
• variation