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Synonym Chooser

How is the word uncanny distinct from other similar adjectives?

The words eerie and weird are common synonyms of uncanny. While all three words mean "mysteriously strange or fantastic," uncanny implies disquieting strangeness or mysteriousness.

an uncanny resemblance between total strangers

In what contexts can eerie take the place of uncanny?

The words eerie and uncanny are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, eerie suggests an uneasy or fearful consciousness that mysterious and malign powers are at work.

an eerie calm preceded the bombing raid

When would weird be a good substitute for uncanny?

Although the words weird and uncanny have much in common, weird may imply an unearthly or supernatural strangeness or it may stress peculiarity or oddness.

weird creatures from another world

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 uncanny Image Image Image In song, Johnston had an uncanny ability to capture complicated feelings with a few incisive lines, bleated sweetly over chords pounded or strummed. Grayson Haver Currin Eli Durst, New York Times, 1 May 2025 Their cells rewind to a younger, more flexible state, then rebuild the body with uncanny precision. Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 1 May 2025 The experience of asking myself questions about my own subject was uncanny. D. Graham Burnett, New Yorker, 26 Apr. 2025 And who can blame him? Uncut Gemstones • Great to see J. Gaven Wilde and Emma Shannon return as young Jesse and Judy Gemstone, who are so uncanny in the roles that Hershal Pandya interviewed them for us last season. Scott Tobias, Vulture, 14 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for uncanny
Recent Examples of Synonyms for uncanny
Adjective
  • Dipping in and out of this book over a few months might inspire a new reverence for the mysterious human body.
    The Atlantic, The Atlantic, 15 May 2025
  • The family adventure show is set at mysterious Crookhaven School where high achieving young crooks from across the world are secretly selected to hone their skills in disciplines such as deception, crimnastics, forgery and infiltration.
    Max Goldbart, Deadline, 15 May 2025
Adjective
  • The anticipated 10th Anniversary season of Chef’s Table on Netflix kicked off on April 28, and the buzz surrounding the series and its superhuman subjects has been buzzing since.
    Kristin L. Wolfe, Forbes.com, 9 May 2025
  • The rise of no-code design has been like the building of a massive tower by a superhuman labor force – it’s been a whirlwind.
    John Werner, Forbes.com, 30 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • Pink Floyd stayed for extended periods, and the band used the eerie image of an island windmill on the cover of its soundtrack for More, Barbet Schroeder’s 1969 film about the hippie-heroin scene that was partly filmed on the island.
    Julia Chaplin, Travel + Leisure, 13 May 2025
  • Sure enough, within minutes of ducking into the foliage, our heroes hear an eerie whistling and see torches in the darkness.
    Noel Murray, New York Times, 12 May 2025
Adjective
  • The crime scene was made more terrifying by a cryptic message the killer scrawled across a wall near the victims that demanded drug money.
    David Schutz, Sun Sentinel, 6 May 2025
  • Fans immediately took the cryptic message as a subtle reference to the current state of their friendship, as the singer and fashion pro have been besties for over 30 years.
    Jessica Bennett, VIBE.com, 5 May 2025
Adjective
  • Revival — Premieres Thursday, June 12 at 10 p.m. ET/PT On one miraculous day in rural Wisconsin, the recently deceased suddenly rise from their graves.
    Tony Maglio, HollywoodReporter, 12 May 2025
  • That Jia could make anything out of that flotsam and jetsam is astonishing, but his ability to not only recreate those time frames but craft all of it into a woozy, free-floating memory piece is miraculous.
    David Fear, Rolling Stone, 9 May 2025
Adjective
  • The case is haunting, the mystery compelling, and the international threads gripping.
    Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 5 May 2025
  • Cruise portrayed two of the most haunting characters of his career around the time Bale was watching him on the talk show circuit, as a megalomaniacal motivational speaker in Magnolia and a man pulled into a dangerous web of cultish goings-on in Eyes Wide Shut.
    Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 15 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • According to Nutritionists By Brianna Peters In an era when nearly everything feels politicized and uncertain, these mystic tools offer something precious: a means of reconnecting with ourselves.
    Michaela Trimble, Vogue, 21 Apr. 2025
  • In the West, she’s been sanctified, but also portrayed as a sinner, a nun, a mystic, and Jesus’ wife.
    Eliza Griswold, New Yorker, 19 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • Mornings at Huka are magical as mists lift from the river and cloak the gardens of tree ferns, flax, totara, and rimu pines.
    Kendall Hill, Travel + Leisure, 15 May 2025
  • This imaginative backstory, brought to life with the help of the French film studio Gaumont, adds a magical dimension that makes Mirokaï feel more like a companion than a machine.
    Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 14 May 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Uncanny.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/uncanny. Accessed 20 May. 2025.

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