weird

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noun \ˈwird\

Definition of weird

1 : fate, destiny; especially : ill fortune
2 : soothsayer

weird was our Word of the Day on 02/20/2016. Hear the podcast!

Recent Examples of weird from the Web

Lewis called the off-season market weird, especially for guys his age.

— stefan stevenson, star-telegram.com, "Colby Lewis hoped to return but Rangers never offered guarantee", 16 June 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of weird

Middle English wird, werd, from Old English wyrd; akin to Old Norse urthr fate, Old English weorthan to become — more at worth

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First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

Other Occult Terms

augury, censor, invocation, lucidity, metempsychosis, mojo, numinous, preternatural, weird, wraith

weird

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adjective \ˈwird\

Definition of weird

1 : of, relating to, or caused by witchcraft or the supernatural : magical
2 : of strange or extraordinary character : odd, fantastic

weirdly

adverb

weirdness

noun

See weird defined for English-language learners

See weird defined for kids

Examples of weird in a Sentence

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 of weird from the Web

For more in weird swimwear, check out: Beauty Benefits of a Beach Vacation Without the Beach:

— donna freydkin, Allure, "This "Pizza-Kini" Is a Bikini Made From Pizza and it Costs $10,000", 5 July 2017
The most interesting thing that happens back in Alaska is Noah washing his one spare dress shirt and making his GF a weird shell case that describes their relationship.

— emily fehrenbacher, Alaska Dispatch News, "In new season of ‘Alaskan Bush People,’ Browns travel to California after Ami’s cancer diagnosis", 5 July 2017
The blue pants are an improvement over that weird greenish, teal, aqua shade that was met with bewilderment at the unveiling in 2008 on the RiverWalk just south of Wells St. downtown.

— jim stingl, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Stingl: Ayyy! Bronze Fonz's jeans are finally blue rather than turquoise", 30 June 2017
At about the same time, a group of physicists were beginning to study very tiny particles like electrons, as well as the weird things that can happen with light.

— avery thompson, Popular Mechanics, "In 1928, One Physicist Accidentally Predicted Antimatter", 23 June 2017
Shadow of Mordor spent so long lulling the player into a sense of complacency that when its story finally did go to some weird places—right at the end—

— hayden dingman, PCWorld, "Hands-on: Middle Earth: Shadow of War gets more creative with Tolkien's universe", 21 June 2017
The weird part was sitting in the front of the TV and hearing my name on TV with my friends and family watching with me.

— Pomerado News, "RB's Calvin Mitchell signs $1.3M pro baseball contract", 21 June 2017
Then the researchers started to see weird data points, like an Egyptian cat at a Viking sea port during the Middle Ages, and Asian cats at a Roman Red Sea port during the height of the Roman Empire.

— annalee newitz, Ars Technica, "Cats are an extreme outlier among domestic animals", 19 June 2017
Betsy DeVos, may also play a weird role in the Russia investigation.

— dan sweeney, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Let the budget machinations begin", 1 June 2017

Shakespeare's Connection to weird

You may know today's word as a generalized term describing something unusual, but weird 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.

Origin and Etymology of weird

see ¹weird

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First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

Synonym Discussion of weird

weird, eerie, uncanny mean mysteriously strange or fantastic. weird may imply an unearthly or supernatural strangeness or it may stress queerness 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

Other Occult Terms

augury, censor, invocation, lucidity, metempsychosis, mojo, numinous, preternatural, wraith

WEIRD Defined for English Language Learners

weird

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adjective

Definition of weird for English Language Learners

: unusual or strange

WEIRD Defined for Kids

weird

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adjective \ˈwird\

Definition of weird for Students

weirder

;

weirdest

: very unusual : strange So what if I have weird eyebrows and funny toes? — Judy Blume, Sheila the Great

History for weird

The adjective weird came from an earlier noun weird, which meant “fate.” In Scotland weird was used as an adjective in the phrase “the Weird Sisters,” a name for the Fates, three goddesses who set human destinies. In his play Macbeth, William Shakespeare adapted this phrase for the eerie sisters who tell Macbeth his fate. So well-known was Shakespeare's usage that the original meaning of weird was forgotten and people assumed that it meant “strange, fantastic”—which accurately described the sisters in the play.