sundry

What it means

1. More than one or two but not very many; a number of, several.

   Ennius an olde auncient Latin poet, & of great authoritee, whom Cicero verie often times citeth in ſondrie his werkes.

   1564 February, Erasmus, “The Saiynges of Marcus Tullius Cicero”, in Nicolas Udall [i.e., Nicholas Udall], transl., Apophthegmes, that is to Saie, Prompte, Quicke, Wittie and Sentẽcious Saiynges, […], London: […] Ihon Kingston, →OCLC, book II, folio 229, recto, paragraph 45, marginal note

   5 more examples

   Dearely beloued brethren, the ſcripture moueth vs in ſondrye places, to acknowledge and confeſſe our manyfolde ſynnes and wyckedneſſe, […]

   1552, Thomas Cranmer [et al.], compilers, “An Ordre for Morninge Prayer Dayly throughout the Yeare”, in The Boke of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacramentes, […], 2nd edition, London: […] Edwardi Whytchurche […], →OCLC

   Sondry & reaſonable be the cauſes vvhy learned men haue vſed to offer and dedicate ſuch vvorkes as they put abrode, to ſome ſuch perſonage as they thinke fitteſt, either in reſpect of abilitie of defenſe, or ſkill for iugement, or priuate regard of kindeneſſe and dutie.

   1570, Margaret Ascham, “To the Honorable Sir William Cecill Knight, Principall Secretarie to the Quenes Most Excellent Maiestie”, in Roger Ascham, edited by Margaret Ascham, The Scholemaster: Or Plaine and Perfite Way of Teaching Children, to Vnderstand, Write, and Speake, the Latin Tong, […], London: […] John Daye, […], →OCLC

   VVith this ſtrange vertue, / He hath a heauenly guift of Propheſie, / And ſundry Bleſſings hang about his Throne, / That ſpeake him full of Grace.

   c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene iii], page 147, column 1

   The VVater Souldier hath divers and ſundry long narrovv leaves pointed ſet cloſe together ſomevvhat like unto the leaves of Aloes for the forme, […]

   1640, John Parkinson, “Stratiotes sive Militaris Aizoides. Water Souldier.”, in Theatrum Botanicum: The Theater of Plants. Or, An Herball of a Large Extent: […], London: […] Tho[mas] Cotes, →OCLC, page 1249

   [H]e cleared a ſemi-circular ſpace before her chair, thrice vvith the moſt profound reverence bovved to her, thrice turned himſelf around vvith ſundry grimaces, and then fiercely planted himſelf at her ſide.

   1782, [Frances Burney], “A Masquerade”, in Cecilia, or Memoirs of an Heiress. […], volume I, London: […] T[homas] Payne and Son […], and T[homas] Cadell […], →OCLC, book II, pages 181–182

2. Of various types, especially when numerous; diverse, varied.

   On the outskirts were various rude booths, in which whiskey and water, and sundry articles of provision, and fodder for horses, were dispensed for a consideration.

   1856, Harriet Beecher Stowe, “The Camp-meeting”, in Dred; a Tale of the Great Dismal Swamp. […], volume I, Boston, Mass.: Phillips, Sampson and Company, →OCLC, page 297

   Synonyms: manifold

3. Consisting of an assortment of different kinds; miscellaneous.

   [I]t is a melancholy of mine ovvne, compounded of many ſimples, extracted from many obiects, and indeed the ſundrie contemplation of my trauells, in which by often rumination, vvraps me in a most humorous ſadneſſe.

   c. 1598–1600 (date written), William Shakespeare, “As You Like It”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene i], page 200, column 2

   2 more examples

   For vvhat reaſon is there vvᶜʰ ſhould but induce, and therfore much leſſe enforce vs to thinke, that care of diſſimilitude betvveene the people of God & the heathen nations about them, vvas any more the cauſe of forbidding them to put on garments of ſundry ſtuffe then of charging them vvithall not to ſovv their fields with meſline, or that this vvas any more the cauſe of forbidding them to eate Svvines fleſh, then of charging them vvithall not to eate the fleſh of Eagles, Haukes, and the like?

   [1594], Richard Hooker, “That the Course which the Wisdome of God doth Teach, Maketh Not against Our Conformity with the Church of Rome in Such Things”, in J[ohn] S[penser], editor, Of the Lawes of Ecclesiastical Politie, […], 3rd edition, London: […] Will[iam] Stansby [for Matthew Lownes], published 1611, →OCLC, book IV, page 139

   Virtually all this activity has been what we might call "excavative"—[…]with a variety of analytic tools intended to uncover the original meanings of biblical words, the life situations in which specific texts were used, the sundry sources from which longer texts were assembled.

   1981, Robert Alter, “A Literary Approach to the Bible”, in The Art of Biblical Narrative, page 13

   Synonyms: assorted, confused, conglomerate, desultory, deviating, different, disaccordant, discordant · Antonyms: homogeneous, invariable, of a piece, onefold, samely, uniform, uniformal, unmixed

In a sentence

Dearely beloued brethren, the ſcripture moueth vs in ſondrye places, to acknowledge and confeſſe our manyfolde ſynnes and wyckedneſſe, […]

1552, Thomas Cranmer [et al.], compilers, “An Ordre for Morninge Prayer Dayly throughout the Yeare”, in The Boke of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacramentes, […], 2nd edition, London: […] Edwardi Whytchurche […], →OCLC

Where it comes from

1. Proto-Indo-European*senH-“apart; for oneself; without”
2. Proto-Germanic*sundraz“alone, isolated; separate”
3. Old Englishsyndriġ“alone, distinct, separate, single; sundry, various; concerning a single person, own, particular, peculiar, private; exceptional, remarkable, set apart, special; (distributive) one each”
4. Middle Englishsondri
5. Englishsundry

The adjective is derived from Middle English sondri, sondry, syndry (“individually; occasionally; separately; variously”) [and other forms], from Old English syndriġ (“alone, distinct, separate, single; sundry, various; concerning a single person, own, particular, peculiar, private; exceptional, remarkable, set apart, special; (distributive) one each”) [and other forms], from sundor (“differently; privately; separate, separately”) (from Proto-Germanic *sundraz (“alone, isolated; separate”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *senH- (“apart; for oneself; without”)) + -iġ (“suffix forming adjectives”). The English word is analysable as sunder + -y. The noun and pronoun are derived from the adjective. Cognates * Dutch zonderlijk (“separate”) (rare), Dutch afzonderlijk (“separate”) * Low German sunderig (“single; special”) * Middle High German sunderig (“private; separate; special”) * Swedish söndrig (“broken; tattered”)