Definition of Multicultural
(adjective) Concerning two or more cultures.
Example of Multicultural
- A large university in the United States typically has a multicultural student population.
Multicultural Pronunciation
Syllabification: mul·ti·cul·tur·al
Audio Pronunciation
Phonetic Spelling
- American English – /muhl-tee-kUHl-chuhr-ruhl/
- British English – /muhl-tee-kUHl-chuh-ruhl/
International Phonetic Alphabet
- American English – /ˌməltiˈkəl(t)ʃ(ə)r(ə)l/
- British English – /ˌmʌltɪˈkʌltʃ(ə)rəl/
Usage Note
- Sociologists study (noun) multiculturality and (noun) multiculturalism to examine (adverb) multiculturally relevant themes such as (noun) multiculturalists and the process of (noun) multiculturalization or how culture (verb) multiculturalizes.
Additional Information
- Word origin of “multicultural” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com
- Kendall, Gavin, Ian Woodward, and Zlatko Skrbiš. 2009. The Sociology of Cosmopolitanism: Globalization, Identity, Culture and Government. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
- Martell, Luke. 2010. The Sociology of Globalization. Malden, MA: Polity Press.
- Nash, Kate. 2010. Contemporary Political Sociology: Globalization, Politics, and Power. 2nd ed. Malden, MA: Blackwell.
- Robertson, Roland, and Kathleen E. White, eds. 2003. Globalization: Critical Concepts in Sociology. London: Routledge.
- Sassen, Saskia. 2007. A Sociology of Globalization. New York: Norton.
- Savage, Michael, Gaynor Bagnall, and Brian Longhurst. 2005. Globalization and Belonging. London: SAGE.
Related Terms
- culture
- cultural diffusion
- global perspective
- globalization
- individual
- material culture
- nonmaterial culture
- norm
- power
- tourism
Cite the Definition of Multicultural
ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “multicultural.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved May 29, 2023 (https://sociologydictionary.org/multicultural/).
APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)
multicultural. (2014). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/multicultural/
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “multicultural.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed May 29, 2023. https://sociologydictionary.org/multicultural/.
MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)
“multicultural.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2014. Web. 29 May. 2023. <https://sociologydictionary.org/multicultural/>.