mis·cel·la·ne·ous / ˌmisəˈlānēəs/ • adj. (of items or people gathered or considered together) of various types or from different sources: he picked up the miscellaneous papers. ∎  (of a collection or group) composed of members or elements of different kinds: a miscellaneous collection of well-known ne'er-do-wells.DERIVATIVES: mis·cel·la·ne·ous·ly adv.mis·cel·la·ne·ous·ness n.

mis·cel·la·ny / ˈmisəˌlānē; miˈselənē/ • n. (pl. -nies) a group or collection of different items; a mixture: Talkeetna was a random miscellany of log cabins. ∎  a book containing a collection of pieces of writing by different authors.

miscellaneous XVII. f. L. miscellāneus, f. miscellus mixed, f. miscēre MIX; see -ANEOUS.
So miscellany XVI. — (with assim. to -Y3) F. miscellanées fem. pl., or L. miscellānea n. pl.

Miscellany

a mixture of various things; a medley, 1617; a collection of writings on various subjects.

Examples: miscellany of Christians and Turks together, 1703; of deformities, 1620; of humours, 1668; of prose; of irreconcilable theorists, 1833; of trees, 1703.