kooky

adjective

ˈkü-kē 

variants or less commonly kookie

kookier; kookiest

: having the characteristics of a kook : offbeat, eccentric

kookiness noun

Synonyms

• bizarre
• bizarro
• cranky
• crazy
• curious
• eccentric
• erratic
• far-out
• funky
• funny
• kinky
• odd
• off-kilter
• off-the-wall
• offbeat
• out-of-the-way
• outlandish
• outré
• peculiar
• quaint
• queer
• queerish
• quirky
• remarkable
• rum [chiefly British]
• screwy
• spaced-out
• strange
• wacky
• whacky
• way-out
• weird
• weirdo
• wild

Examples of kooky in a Sentence

I'm not sure that someone with such kooky ideas on biology should be teaching the subject to high schoolers.

if you think that drugs aren't bad for you, you haven't met that guy's kooky friends

Recent Examples on the Web

Over the course of the series, in between competing in kooky challenges and going on dates, new islanders are brought in and contestants may re-couple at their discretion — those not paired up are in danger of elimination. —Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 6 June 2025

Editor’s picks Her 2010 debut, The Family Jewels, introduced an avant-garde pop talent who was unafraid to be kooky and cerebral. —Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 3 June 2025

In between cocktails by the pool, the singles compete in kooky challenges and go on dates (and even overnights) to strengthen their bonds. —Randall Colburn, EW.com, 3 June 2025

But, to echo that specific piece of dialogue, Romero is profoundly proud of the fact that Queens of the Dead isn't a George A. Romero movie, and not just because of the subject matter: a kooky assemblage of LGBTQ+ party-goers must hunker down at a warehouse drag show when a zombie outbreak occurs. —Nick Romano, EW.com, 3 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1957, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for kooky

• spooky