# eclectic
## English
### Alternative forms

* eclectick (obsolete)

### Etymology

From French éclectique, from Ancient Greek ἐκλεκτικός (eklektikós, “selective”), from ἐκλέγω (eklégō, “I pick, choose”), from ἐκ (ek, “out, from”) + λέγω (légō, “I choose, count”).
Cognate to elect.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ɛkˈlɛk.tɪk/, /ɪˈklɛk.tɪk/
* Audio (US):(file)
* Audio (General Australian):(file)
* Rhymes: -ɛktɪk

### Adjective

eclectic (comparative more eclectic, superlative most eclectic)
* Selecting a mixture of what appears to be best of various doctrines, methods or styles.
** 1893, John Robson, Hinduism and its Relations to Christianity, pages 211, 214:Chunder Sen and the Progressive Brahmists broke entirely with Hinduism...and he selected from the scriptures of all creeds what seemed best in them for instruction and for worship. […] It is an eclectic religion: it seeks to select what is good from all religions, and it has become the latest evidence that no eclectic religion can ever influence large numbers of men.
** 2017 August 2, Seth Rogovoy, Don Byron and Friends to Explore Early Soul Music at Helsinki Hudson‎:Though rooted in jazz, Byron's music is stylistically eclectic.
* Unrelated and unspecialized; heterogeneous.
** 1983, Peter J. Wilson, Man, the Promising Primate: The Conditions of Human Evolution, page 140:All members of the Hominoidea, apes and man, show an eclectic taste in food but select, from a wide range of possibilities, only a few to provide the bulk of their diet.
** 2006, W. Frederick Zimmerman, Should Barack Obama Be President?, page 153:Colvin said Obama has an eclectic taste in music, listening to everything from Indonesian flute music to OutKast to Motown.
** 2018 September 26, Drachinifel, 2:30 from the start, in The Battle of Lissa - Special‎, archived from the original on 9 August 2023:The Austrians concentrated their entire armored formation into the 1st Division; the 2nd Division consisted solely of the wooden ship of the line Kaiser, looking incredibly out of place in a battle of ironclads, along with five frigates; and the 3rd Division had an eclectic collection of smaller gunboats and armed merchantmen.

#### Synonyms

* (unrelated and unspecialized): heterogeneous; see also Thesaurus:heterogeneous

#### Antonyms

* (antonym(s) of “selecting a mixture of doctrines”): exclusive, homogeneous, orthodox, standard, uniform; see also Thesaurus:homogeneous

#### Derived terms

* eclectically
* eclecticism
* eclecticist
* eclecticize
* eclectic medicine
* eclection
* noneclectic
* uneclectic

#### Translations

    The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

#### See also

* cherry pick
* heteroclite
* holistic

### Noun

eclectic (plural eclectics)
* Someone who selects according to the eclectic method.
** 1986 December 14, Mary Morrisey, “Roll Over, Jehovah — And Tell St. Nick the News”, in Gay Community News, volume 14, number 22, page 5:Neo-Pagans are eclectics, often borrowing from a variety of cultural traditions as they try to shape their religious organizations and practices to meet group and individual needs.

#### Translations
## Romanian
### Etymology

Borrowed from French éclectique.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /eˈklek.tik/

### Adjective

eclectic m or n (feminine singular eclectică, masculine plural eclectici, feminine and neuter plural eclectice)
* eclectic