eccentric
1ec·cen·tric
adj \ik-ˈsen-trik, ek-\Definition of ECCENTRIC
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a : deviating from a circular path; especially : elliptical 1 <an eccentric orbit> b : located elsewhere than at the geometrical center; also : having the axis or support so located <an eccentric wheel>
— ec·cen·tri·cal·ly \-tri-k(ə-)lē\ adverb
Examples of ECCENTRIC
- He was a kind but eccentric man.
- She's become more eccentric over the years.
- It was Charles Darwin's eccentric mathematician cousin Francis Galton who in 1874 ignited the nature-nurture controversy. … —Matt Ridley, Time, 2 June 2003
- Eccentric drifters that normally roam the farthest reaches of the solar system, these daredevils fly so close to the Sun that they pass through its scorching corona. —Maggie McKee, Astronomy, December 2002
- In the spit-and-polish Navy, he and his equally unkempt colleagues were regarded as eccentric. —David M. Kennedy, Atlantic, March 1999
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Origin of ECCENTRIC
Middle English, from Medieval Latin eccentricus, from Greek ekkentros, from ex out of + kentron center
First Known Use: circa 1630
Related to ECCENTRIC
Synonyms: bizarre, bizarro, cranky, crazy, curious, odd, erratic, far-out, funky, funny, kinky, kooky (also kookie), offbeat, off-kilter, off-the-wall, outlandish, out-of-the-way, outré, peculiar, quaint, queer, queerish, quirky, remarkable, rum [chiefly British], screwy, spaced-out, strange, wacky (also whacky), way-out, weird, weirdo, wild
Related Words: aberrant, abnormal, addlepated, flaky; extraordinary, fantastic (also fantastical), freak, freakish, freaky, phantasmagoric (or phantasmagorical), phenomenal; atypical, rare, singular, uncommon, uncustomary, unique, unusual, unwonted; conspicuous, notable, noticeable, outstanding, prominent, salient, striking; atrocious, outrageous, shocking; crotchety, idiosyncratic, nonconformist, nonmainstream, out-there, unconventional, unorthodox; baffling, bewildering, confounding, mystifying, perplexing, puzzling
Near Antonyms: average, commonplace, everyday, garden, normal, ordinary, prosaic, routine, run-of-the-mill, standard, typical, unexceptional, unremarkable, usual, workaday; conformist, conservative, conventional; expected, familiar, knee-jerk, predictable; common, customary, frequent, habitual, regular, wonted
See Synonym Discussion at strange
Rhymes with ECCENTRIC
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