category

Everyday

1. A category is a group of things or people that are alike in some way: «Put the animals into categories». tree →
2. A category is a class in a competition or list: «the under-10 category». tree →

In the lessons

In maths and science pupils sort things into categories: odd and even numbers, mammals and reptiles, solids, liquids and gases. In data handling, a bar chart shows how many items are in each category. In competitions there are categories by age. Phrases: fall into a category, in the category of.

Examples

• Sort these shapes into two categories. tree →
• Whales are in the category of mammals. tree →
• She won the under-ten category in the art contest. tree →
• The bar chart shows four categories of pets. tree →
• Which category does a tomato belong to? tree →
• We put the books into categories: fiction and non-fiction. tree →

Note

Plural «categories». Verb «categorise» (UK) or «categorize» (US). Pronounced «CAT-uh-gree» in the UK and «CAT-uh-gor-ee» in the USA. In charts each category gets its own bar or slice.

In Jewish tradition

Interpretation: In Sefer Yetzirah the "ten categories" are the ten Sefirot, the ten basic numbers or forces through which the world was made. Tradition reads them as the building blocks of all that exists. In the primary lessons: In maths and science pupils sort things into categories: odd and even numbers, mammals and reptiles, solids, liquids and gases. In data handling, a bar chart shows how many items are in each category. In competitions there are categories by age. Phrases: fall into a category, in the category of.

Examples

• The following are the ten categories of existence out of nothing: (Sefer Yetzirah, Kalisch 1877) tree →

Note

Plural «categories». Verb «categorise» (UK) or «categorize» (US). Pronounced «CAT-uh-gree» in the UK and «CAT-uh-gor-ee» in the USA. In charts each category gets its own bar or slice.