oddball

odd·ball | \ ˈäd-ˌbȯl

How to pronounce oddball (audio)

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Definition of oddball

: one that is eccentric

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Examples of oddball in a Sentence

He used to be a real oddball back in high school. she's known as the office oddball

Recent Examples on the Web As much as the city is a beacon—for freedom, for refuge, for being a place where there’s an existing warren of every type of oddball imaginable—it’s also increasingly divided by income inequality and gentrification. — Elias Williams, National Geographic, "New York’s arts scene remains shut down indefinitely—can it evolve and survive?," 15 June 2020 Astronomers have long been hot on the trail of this curious cosmic oddball, but so far, the evidence has been thin. — Jennifer Leman, Popular Mechanics, "Astronomers Finally Discover the Elusive Mid-Sized Black Hole," 1 Apr. 2020 In fact, a body of social-science research suggests that being an oddball or a social reject can spark remarkable creativity. — Olga Khazan, The Atlantic, "The Perks of Being a Weirdo," 3 Apr. 2020 As much of an oddball as Bale's car whisperer is in the garage and behind the wheel, he's grounded by the unending support of wife Mollie (Caitriona Balfe) and son Peter (Noah Jupe). — Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, "Review: The bromance is real in Matt Damon and Christian Bale's retro cool 'Ford v Ferrari'," 11 Nov. 2019 Cheese-adoring oddball Wallace and his dog Gromit are an English staple, and this romp pits them against a gigantic bunny eating up a town's prize veggies. — Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, "25 films for quarantined kids of all ages that will keep the whole family entertained," 24 Mar. 2020 Since the discovery of the first known changing-look quasar in 2014, astronomers have chased down more of these oddballs—some of which appear to rapidly brighten as a galaxy suddenly flares into a luminous quasar. — Shannon Hall, Scientific American, "Lights Out: Astronomers Illuminate the Mystery of Vanishing Quasars," 12 Dec. 2019 The Snapdragon 675 is the one oddball listing in that spec sheet. — Ron Amadeo, Ars Technica, "TCL launches self-branded smartphones at $449, $249," 6 Apr. 2020 But these oddballs were heroic, each in his own way. — New York Times, "In a Time of Crisis, Her Voice Was the One That Galvanized Alaska," 24 Mar. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'oddball.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Dictionary Entries near oddball

odd-come-shortly

Statistics for oddball

Last Updated

2 Jul 2020

Cite this Entry

“Oddball.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oddball. Accessed 13 Jul. 2020.

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