versatile

Adjective
Synonyms: various

WordNet 3.0

Adjective (4)

  1. having great diversity or variety“his various achievements are impressive”“his vast and versatile erudition”Synonyms: various
  2. changeable or inconstant“versatile moods”
  3. competent in many areas and able to turn with ease from one thing to another“a versatile writer”
  4. able to move freely in all directions“an owl's versatile toe can move backward and forward”“an insect's versatile antennae can move up and down or laterally”“a versatile anther of a flower moves freely in the wind”
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Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)

Versatile \Ver"sa*tile\, a. [L. versatilis, fr. versare to turn around, v. freq. of vertere: cf. F. versatile. See Verse.]

1.Capable of being turned round. --Harte. [1913 Webster]

2.Liable to be turned in opinion; changeable; variable; unsteady; inconstant; as, a versatile disposition. [1913 Webster]

3.Turning with ease from one thing to another; readily applied to a new task, or to various subjects; many-sided; as, versatile genius; a versatile politician. [1913 Webster]

Conspicuous among the youths of high promise . . . was the quick and versatile [Charles] Montagu.— Macaulay.[1913 Webster]

4.(Nat. Hist.) Capable of turning; freely movable; as, a versatile anther, which is fixed at one point to the filament, and hence is very easily turned around; a versatile toe of a bird. [1913 Webster] -- Ver"sa*tile*ly, adv. -- -- Ver"sa*tile*ness, n. [1913 Webster]

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