weird

1 of 2

adjective

ˈwird 

1

: of strange or extraordinary character : odd, fantastic

2

: of, relating to, or caused by witchcraft or the supernatural : magical

weirdness noun

weird

2 of 2

noun

1

: fate, destiny

especially : ill fortune

2

: soothsayer

Did you know?

Shakespeare's Connection to Weird

You may know weird as a generalized term describing something unusual, but this word also has older meanings that are more specific. Weird derives from the Old English noun wyrd, essentially meaning "fate." By the 8th century, the plural wyrde had begun to appear in texts as a gloss for Parcae, the Latin name for the Fates—three goddesses who spun, measured, and cut the thread of life. In the 15th and 16th centuries, Scots authors employed werd or weird in the phrase "weird sisters" to refer to the Fates. William Shakespeare adopted this usage in Macbeth, in which the "weird sisters" are depicted as three witches. Subsequent adjectival use of weird grew out of a reinterpretation of the weird used by Shakespeare.

Synonyms

Adjective

• bizarre
• bizarro
• cranky
• crazy
• curious
• eccentric
• erratic
• far-out
• funky
• funny
• kinky
• kooky
• kookie
• 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
• weirdo
• wild

Choose the Right Synonym for weird

weird, eerie, uncanny mean mysteriously strange or fantastic.

weird may imply an unearthly or supernatural strangeness or it may stress peculiarity or oddness.

weird creatures from another world

eerie suggests an uneasy or fearful consciousness that mysterious and malign powers are at work.

an eerie calm preceded the bombing raid

uncanny implies disquieting strangeness or mysteriousness.

an uncanny resemblance between total strangers

Examples of weird in a Sentence

Adjective

Cosmic strings are second only to black holes in the astrophysicist's pantheon of weird objects. They are narrow, ultradense filaments formed during a phase transition—called inflation—within the first microsecond of cosmic history. —Steve Nadis, Astronomy, October 2005

If you looked at them closely you realized they were carved with weird, pagan creatures, more like hobgoblins than men, half hidden among trees and leaves—here acanthus and there what looked like a palm tree. —Kate Atkinson, Case Histories, 2004

As an extended fictional device allegory is used mainly in didactic, satirical fables, such as Gulliver's Travels, Animal Farm and Erewhon. In these masterpieces a surface realism of presentation gives the fantastic events a kind of weird plausibility … —David Lodge, The Art of Fiction, 1992

My little brother acts weird sometimes.

I heard a weird noise.

That's weird—I put my book down right here just a few minutes ago and now it's gone.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Dilettante listing brokers can also cost sellers with bad marketing, weird staging, and a lack of responsiveness. —Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 14 Nov. 2024

He is represented by no gallery, and works in a basement in Brooklyn, from which emerges the fruits of his weird obsessions. —Jerry Saltz, Vulture, 13 Nov. 2024

Here are a few of the strangest ways in which people still forecast long-term weather—ranked from least to most weird. —Corey Buhay, Outside Online, 7 Nov. 2024

There’s often a threshold for how weird something can sound beyond which most people stop taking it seriously. —Oshan Jarow, Vox, 4 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

from construal as an adjective of weird entry 2 in weird sisters, name for the Fates of Greek and Roman myth (early Scots werd sisteris, Middle English wyrde systeres, Shakespeare weyard/weyward sisters, applied to the witches in Macbeth)

Noun

Middle English wird, werd, going back to Old English wyrd, going back to Germanic *wurdi- "fate, chance" (whence Old Saxon wurđ "fate," Old High German wurt, Old Norse urðr), derivative from the base of *werþan- "to come about, happen, become" — more at worth entry 4

First Known Use

Adjective

1817, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing weird

• weird out

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Kids Definition

weird

adjective

ˈwi(ə)rd

1

: of, relating to, or caused by witchcraft or magic

2

: very unusual or strange : fantastic

weirdly adverb

weirdness noun

Etymology

Adjective

Old English wyrd (noun) "fate"

Word Origin

The belief in some form of fate, a force that cannot be explained, predicted, or controlled, has been a part of many cultures. When people understood very little of the laws of nature, such a belief may have helped to make it easier to live with life's misfortunes even if it did not make life any more comfortable. The Old English word for "fate" was wyrd. When the English began translating Latin works, they used this word for the Roman Fates, goddesses who were believed to control the events in human lives. When the Fates were described as "weird sisters," the first use of weird as an adjective occurred. People practicing witchcraft were thought to be controlling the wyrd, and in time the Modern English word weird came to refer to things that seemed to happen by magic or that were strange, unusual, or mysterious.