kook

noun

ˈkük How to pronounce kook (audio)
Definition of kooknext
as in eccentric
a person of odd or whimsical habits if you insist on painting your house bright orange, everyone will assume you are a kook

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of kook Prizes will be available for participants in the categories of individual kook and group costume, judged by a panel composed of race partner Cardiff 101 Mainstreet. — Karen Billing, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Jan. 2026 What so many of these talking heads have in common—legitimate experts, well-meaning journalists, and kooks alike—is how costly their recommendations are. — CBS News, 3 Jan. 2026 The kooks of that age believed that Iran-Contra was only just an inkling of the secret government behind the scenes that was preparing to herd Americans into prison camps. — Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 7 Oct. 2025 Not the crazy aunt/spell-casting kook who’s going to be film fans’ top Halloween costume this year. — Brian Truitt, USA Today, 9 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for kook
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kook
  1. eccentric
  2. character
  3. crackpot
  4. wacko
  5. weirdo
  6. loon
  7. nutcase
  8. nutter
Noun
  • With its loose ends and digressions, Dream Me a Dream stays true to those idiosyncratic instincts while retaining enough of the welcoming glow of Dance of Love to make this an affecting farewell from an endearing eccentric.
    — Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Pitchfork, 22 June 2026
  • The eccentric cuz is quick to try and help Bobby solve problems, which often gets him into trouble, but ultimately pushes him out of his shell.
    — Skyler Trepel, Entertainment Weekly, 20 June 2026
Definition of eccentric
Noun
  • Each will showcase original works from more than 30 artists reimagining iconic moments, characters and worlds from Sonic’s history, alongside artwork from SEGA’s archives.
    — Matt Minton, Variety, 8 July 2026
  • Thorpe’s characters are so specific, their balance of prickliness and kindness and quirk so delicate, that one wrong casting choice could ruin the whole viewing experience.
    — Judy Berman, Time, 8 July 2026
Definition of character
Noun
  • Artists have always used music to question authority and expose the cracks (and the crackpots) in the American story.
    — Time, Time, 6 May 2026
  • In one corner, the heartless girlboss; in the other, the crackpot conspiracy theorist (who just happens to be more sympathetic and charismatic than such types usually are).
    — Nate Jones, Vulture, 31 Jan. 2026
Definition of crackpot
Noun
  • People who see ghosts tend to see the same ghost wafting down the same staircase, but none of the characters populating Leo’s wacko hallucinations have returned for a repeat perfor-mance.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 Apr. 2026
  • This wacko crew was one of the greatest things in the history of television.
    — Jordan Hoffman, EW.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Definition of wacko
Noun
  • By the early 1990s, Eugene had earned itself a reputation as a beacon of progressive-minded irreverence, drawing a pungent mix of weirdos, iconoclasts, and freethinkers.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 July 2026
  • Generation after generation of cretins and weirdos become Ramones lovers.
    — SPIN Staff, SPIN, 7 July 2026
Definition of weirdo
Noun
  • This is sending shivers down the spines of regular Democrats, who now sheepishly admit the party has been turned over to the left-wing loons.
    — Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 27 June 2026
  • Keep an Eye Out For Wildlife More than 240 species of birds (including an abundance of loons), 14 species of reptiles and amphibians, 54 species of fish, and more than 50 species of mammals call Voyageurs home—at least for part of the year.
    — Robert Annis, Midwest Living, 18 June 2026
Definition of loon
Noun
  • Video testimony provided other repudiations of Eastman’s nutcase legal theory.
    — Walter Shapiro, The New Republic, 17 June 2022
  • Ma Seok-do (Ma) is still with the Geumcheon Police Major Crimes Unit, arriving to help his fellow officers deal with a knife-wielding nutcase who’s taken hostages at a corner store.
    — Dennis Harvey, Variety, 3 June 2022
Definition of nutcase
Noun
  • Whit’s Frozen Custard is known for its flavor of the day calendar, with rich custards running the decadent range from fluffer nutter cookie, carrot cake, and mint cookies ‘n cream to Biscoff cookie butter and banana nut bread.
    — Terry Ward, Travel + Leisure, 9 May 2026
  • Lloyd Hansen is his exit strategy, and this nutter will stop at nothing to snuff Six and steal the drive.
    — Peter Debruge, Variety, 14 July 2022
Definition of nutter

Browse Nearby Words

kolinsky
kook
kookiness
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Kook.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kook. Accessed 12 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on kook

Nglish: Translation of kook for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of fulcrum

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 10
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
banana-mirrored
Contradictory Words Quiz Pick out which word means one thing…and the opp...
See All