oddball

noun odd·ball \ ˈäd-ˌbȯl \

Definition of oddball

:one that is eccentric

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oddball

adjective

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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 of oddball from the Web

LOS ANGELES — When scientists confirmed their existence in the San Gabriel River in 2008, the green sea turtles were thought to be oddballs or lost wanderers.

— louis sahagun, The Seattle Times, "Scientists keep an eye on green sea turtles adapting to life in the San Gabriel River’s murky flows," 18 Aug. 2017
Much of the fun for this run is courtesy of Peter Newman, who sports wild hair and a wild stare to match, as Christopher Wren, an oddball would-be architect who makes the rest of the rogue's gallery ill-at-ease with his behavior.

— philip potempa, Post-Tribune, "Dunes mystery 'Mousetrap' and Mercury's 'Hair' both timely tickets," 15 Aug. 2017
The movie eschews almost all exposition, a risky play that has been a hallmark of both classics (2001: A Space Odyssey) and bombs (David Lynch’s oddball Dune comes to mind).

— jacob oller, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Dark Tower' Is a Mess, but It's Not a Failure," 4 Aug. 2017
Wain (one of Rudd’s Big Slick Celebrity Weekend guests this year) and Showalter keep the story at arm’s length, never investing any genuine emotion in these cartoonish oddballs.

— jon niccum, kansascity, "With Paul Rudd, Amy Poehler, Netflix’s ‘Wet Hot American Summer’ sequel improves with age," 2 Aug. 2017
During oddball, the trace normally shows a clear increase in the potential as the object is recognized.

— chris lee, Ars Technica, "Hypnotic suggestion prevents action, not recognition," 29 July 2017
Final Fantasy XII has always been a bit of an oddball within the long-running series.

— steven strom, Ars Technica, "Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age," 10 July 2017
The mom struggles with an oddball occultist (Steve Oram) and goes through all manner of weirdness on a mission more of revenge than love, leading to a climax that is beautiful, thoughtful and surprising. 4. '

— brian truitt, USA TODAY, "The 10 best movies of 2017 (so far), ranked," 5 July 2017
Throughout, the oddball almost buddy comedy vibes are strong, riding the line between cartoonish and demented.

— colin stutz, Billboard, "Tyler, the Creator Gets His Face Blown Off & Sewn Back on by A$AP Rocky in 'Who Dat Boy' Video," 29 June 2017

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.