Diversified

How to spell diversified

11 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce diversified

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does diversified mean?

1. adjectiveMade up of several different kinds or spread across many varieties to reduce risk or increase variety.
2. verbExpanded into a wider range of products, activities, or investments to spread risk.

Diversified in a sentence

• adjective

  A well diversified portfolio cushions investors against a single market crash.

• verb

  The company diversified its range to survive the downturn.

• adjective

  The region now has a diversified economy that no longer depends on one industry.

• verb

  After the layoffs she diversified her income with freelance work.

Where does diversified come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin diversus, meaning 'turned different ways' or 'separate', which was the past participle of divertere, formed from dis- 'apart' and vertere 'to turn'. From the same vertere root English also gained relatives such as 'convert', 'reverse', and 'version', all of which carry the idea of turning. The adjective 'diverse' entered English through Old French in the 1300s, and the verb 'diversify' was built later, around the 1600s, by adding the productive suffix -ify, meaning 'to make'. 'Diversified' is simply the past tense and adjectival form, describing something that has been made varied or spread across many kinds. The spelling trap lies in the quiet middle: the stressed 'ver' is followed by an unstressed '-si-' that sounds like a vague schwa, and the verb ending shifts from -fy to -fied, which is where writers often hesitate.

How the word is built

• di- (apart, from dis-)
• vers (from Latin vertere, to turn)
• -ify (to make)
• -ied (past tense / adjective ending)