oddity

noun

odd·​i·​ty ˈä-də-tē 

plural oddities

1

: an odd person, thing, event, or trait

2

: the quality or state of being odd

Synonyms

• crotchet
• curiosity
• eccentricity
• erraticism
• idiosyncrasy
• individualism
• kink
• mannerism
• peculiarity
• quiddity
• quip
• quirk
• singularity
• tic
• trick
• twist

Examples of oddity in a Sentence

Her shyness makes her a bit of an oddity in the business world.

The zoo has such oddities as anteaters and platypuses.

Recent Examples on the Web

As further evidence of its oddity, Triton encircles its parent in the opposite direction compared with the other moons. —Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 5 Nov. 2024

Red flags to be aware of – oddities in facial expressions or backgrounds; voice inconsistencies that come across as unnatural; pressure tactics used by the impersonator. —Gene Marks, Forbes, 27 Oct. 2024

Despite this oddity, the apps in question did not suffer from any negative issues. —PCMAG, 23 Oct. 2024

There were still genius oddities here and there—the wistful video gamey emo of Jane Remover’s Teen Week/Frailty, underscores’ fictional town odysseys, DJ Re:Code’s ADHD-core hyper-hyper-pop. —Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 3 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1713, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

oddity

noun

odd·​i·​ty ˈäd-ət-ē 

plural oddities

1

: something odd

2

: the quality or state of being odd