1
as in trick
an odd or peculiar habit
his one oddity is collecting used pencil leads
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2
as in rarity
something strange or unusual that is an object of interest
years ago circus sideshows used to display people with unusual physical features as oddities
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3
as in anomaly
something that is different from what is ordinary or expected
she is an oddity in that, unlike her sisters, she avoids social media
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4
as in eccentric
a person of odd or whimsical habits
an oddity with a penchant for weaving cat fur
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of oddity
From vintage linens and everyday necessities to collectible memorabilia and eclectic oddities, thrift stores have something for everyone.
—
Cori Sears, The Spruce, 9 Feb. 2026
Gone were the college marching bands and Up With People oddities of the 1970s and '80s — in their place, megawatt stars, forever expanding the Monday-morning quarterbacking beyond the Xs and Os, into the realm of music and cultural commentary.
—Matthew Odam, Austin American Statesman, 5 Feb. 2026
The store offered tarot readings and seances, as well as a room full of oddities, including a coffin, taxidermies and an electroshock therapy kit, according to The Salisbury Post.
—Charlotte Observer, 4 Feb. 2026
In The Beauty, Ryan Murphy and co-creator Matthew Hodgson have concocted a genre-hopping oddity that sounds unlikely to work.
—Judy Berman, Time, 30 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for oddity
Cori Sears, The Spruce, 9 Feb. 2026
Gone were the college marching bands and Up With People oddities of the 1970s and '80s — in their place, megawatt stars, forever expanding the Monday-morning quarterbacking beyond the Xs and Os, into the realm of music and cultural commentary.
—Matthew Odam, Austin American Statesman, 5 Feb. 2026
The store offered tarot readings and seances, as well as a room full of oddities, including a coffin, taxidermies and an electroshock therapy kit, according to The Salisbury Post.
—Charlotte Observer, 4 Feb. 2026
In The Beauty, Ryan Murphy and co-creator Matthew Hodgson have concocted a genre-hopping oddity that sounds unlikely to work.
—Judy Berman, Time, 30 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for oddity
Recent Examples of Synonyms for oddity
Noun
-
Wang Xindi won his first Olympic gold earlier today after landing a trick with five twists in the aerial event.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
20 Feb. 2026
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From selecting the perfect bag, to using versatile pouches, and choosing your accessories methodically, these are my tips and tricks for personal item packing.—
Taylor Fox,
Travel + Leisure,
19 Feb. 2026
Noun
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There's zero snowmaking—a rarity in Colorado.—
Evie Carrick,
Travel + Leisure,
19 Feb. 2026
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The 10a’s completely flat back is a rarity among smartphones, most of which have substantial protrusions that house their camera optics, causing those devices to wobble when placed on a table.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
18 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Environmental police have deployed side-scan sonar to try to gather data and detect anomalies on the ocean floor, officials said.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
18 Feb. 2026
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Scientists subtract the temperature anomalies in the rest of the tropical Pacific from those in the region most important for El Niño.—
Andrew Freedman,
CNN Money,
17 Feb. 2026
Noun
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On her trail are a Báthory relative who is vegetarian (Thomas Schubert), his psychotherapist (Lars Eidinger), two vampirologists, a police inspector and a gallery of eccentrics.—
Elsa Keslassy,
Variety,
14 Feb. 2026
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Catherine O’Hara portrayed ridiculous eccentrics with equal parts hilarity and humanity.—
The Week US,
TheWeek,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
His bars are packed tight with jokes and an unwieldy personality, bursting with vocal quirks and tricks that show a rapper growing into his most confident self.—
Matthew Ritchie,
Pitchfork,
23 Feb. 2026
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Inevitably, their strengths and quirks seeped into the composer’s head so that the musicians helped shape the score instead of just carrying out its instructions.—
Justin Davidson,
Vulture,
22 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Those exceptions include time spent playing a different sport on a professional level, military service, religious missionary work and playing sports during a post-graduate year after high school.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
22 Feb. 2026
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California has a number of laws aimed at protecting children’s data privacy, but those laws have exceptions that allow many tech companies to continue packaging and selling students’ personal information.—
Adam Echelman,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Over the past week, a slew of cinematic videos of celebrities and characters in absurd situations have gone viral online, with one commonality –– they were created using a new artificial intelligence tool from Chinese developer ByteDance, sparking anxiety over the fast-evolving capabilities of AI.—
Stephanie Yang,
CNN Money,
20 Feb. 2026
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Transfers have been cancelled if, as Foster says, a player’s character is judged not to be a good fit.—
Richard Sutcliffe,
New York Times,
20 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Those traits were on full display against Dyes.—
Kyle Newman,
Denver Post,
22 Feb. 2026
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Anything that was anti-Jewish—a story about exclusion, an obstacle that hadn’t come down, a disapproving enumeration of supposedly Jewish traits—was possibly more fascinating.—
Nicholas Lemann,
New Yorker,
21 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Oddity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/oddity. Accessed 25 Feb. 2026.
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