quirky

1 of 2

adjective

ˈkwər-kē 

quirkier; quirkiest

: having many quirks : unusual in especially an interesting or appealing way

a quirky sense of humor

quirky ideas/behavior

a quirky and creative artist

… the SoHo store known for its modern, often quirky home accessories …

—Marianne Rohrlich

The result is an extraordinarily fine film, a quieter, more centered vision of Garp's world that loses little of the quirky humor of the original …

—Molly Haskell

quirkily

ˈkwər-kə-lē 

adverb

His political ideas, which had seemed quirkily brilliant in the 1900's …

—Wilfrid Sheed

… he is gregarious and energetic and … enjoys a quirkily methodical, omnivorous turn of mind …

—Cullen Murphy

quirkiness

ˈkwər-kē-nəs 

noun

… is gaining international prominence in interior-design circles simply because its content diverges with typically English quirkiness, from that of its competitors.

—John Duka

quirkiness

2 of 2

noun

quirk·​i·​ness -kēnə̇s 

plural -es

: the quality or state of being quirky

Synonyms of quirky

Adjective

• bizarre
• funny
• strange
• weird
• odd
• curious
• peculiar
• eccentric
• erratic
• remarkable
• unusual
• crazy

Examples of quirky in a Sentence

Adjective

the waitress styles her hair in a quirky way that always gets her remembered by customers

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

What initially seemed like a handful of quirky anecdotes gradually turned into a much broader pattern. — Cyril Grueter, Scientific American, 8 Aug. 2026

The series follows a quirky London woman whose job is responding to the thousands of letters addressed to the world’s greatest detective. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 7 Aug. 2026

Design After endless diatribes about the quirky lines of Ferrari’s all-electric Luce, the marque’s enthusiasts will find that the Amalfi Spider’s long-hood, raked-screen, and open-top lines are comfortingly familiar and unquestionably gorgeous. — Howard Walker, Robb Report, 7 Aug. 2026

Put all of that together and construction’s big pay increases aren’t just a quirky fact about one industry. — Jason St. Angelo, USA Today, 7 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1873, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for quirky

• jerky
• murky
• perky
• turki