H

Heterogeneous

adjective

diverse in character or content: a large and heterogeneous collection

Chemistry of or denoting a process involving substances in different phases (solid, liquid, or gaseous): heterogeneous catalysis

Mathematics incommensurable through being of different kinds, degrees, or dimensions.

Derivatives

heterogeneity

noun

heterogeneously

adverb

heterogeneousness

noun

Origin:

early 17th century: from medieval Latin heterogeneus, from Greek heterogenēs, from heteros 'other' + genos 'a kind'

The correct spelling is heterogeneous, but a fairly common misspelling is heterogenous. The reason for the error probably relates to the pronunciation, which, in rapid speech, often misses out the extra e. Heterogenous is actually a different word, which is used in specialized medical and biological senses and means ‘originating outside the organism’.

"Just as the assembly of heterogeneous fragments is the very definition of the papier colle'"     Representations of Representations, Dagen, Philippe; Penwarden, Charles                                          Art Press June 2008, issue 346