Peculiar — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

Peculiar (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

1. being out of the ordinary

   "a writer with a peculiar talent for capturing the feel of everyday conversation"

   similar: aberrant, aberrated, abnormal, anomalous, atypical, especial, exceeding, exceptional, extraordinaire, extraordinary, freak, odd, phenomenal, preternatural, rare, singular, uncommon, uncustomary, unique, unusual, unwonted
   related: conspicuous, notable, noticeable, outstanding, prominent, remarkable, salient, striking, bizarre, deviant, eccentric, freakish, monstrous, oddball, outlandish, quaint, strange, weird, incomprehensible, inconceivable, incredible, unimaginable, unthinkable
   opposite: common, customary, normal, ordinary, typical, unexceptional, unextraordinary, usual
   near: everyday, familiar, frequent

2. different from the ordinary in a way that causes curiosity or suspicion

   "a peculiar and catlike way of walking"

   similar: bizarre, bizarro, cranky, crazy, curious, eccentric, erratic, far-out, funky, funny, kinky, kooky, odd, off-kilter, off-the-wall, offbeat, out-of-the-way, outlandish, outré, quaint, queer, queerish, quirky, remarkable, rum (chiefly British), screwy, spaced-out, strange, wacky, way-out, weird, weirdo, wild
   related: aberrant, abnormal, addlepated, flaky, extraordinary, fantastic, freak, freakish, freaky, phantasmagoric, phenomenal, atypical, rare, singular, uncommon, uncustomary, unique, unusual, unwonted, conspicuous, notable, noticeable, outstanding, prominent, salient, striking, atrocious, outrageous, shocking, crotchety, idiosyncratic, nonconformist, nonmainstream, out-there, unconventional, unorthodox, baffling, bewildering, confounding, mystifying, perplexing, puzzling
   near: average, commonplace, everyday, garden, normal, ordinary, prosaic, routine, run-of-the-mill, standard, typical, unexceptional, unremarkable, usual, workaday, conformist, conservative, conventional, expected, familiar, knee-jerk, predictable, common, customary, frequent, habitual, regular, wonted

3. noticeably different from what is generally found or experienced

   "a peculiar response to a polite query about his health"

   similar: curious, extraordinary, funny, odd, offbeat, out-of-the-way, queer, rare, singular, strange, unaccustomed, uncommon, uncustomary, unique, unusual, weird
   related: bizarre, eccentric, far-out, kooky, oddball, outlandish, outré, way-out, aberrant, abnormal, atypical, exceptional, irregular, newsworthy, notable, noteworthy, noticeable, particular, remarkable, special
   opposite: common, ordinary, plain, usual
   near: unexceptional, expected, predictable, familiar, normal, regular, typical

4. of, relating to, or belonging to a single person

   "his peculiar way of talking"

   similar: idiomatic, individual, individualized, particular, patented, personal, personalized, private, privy, separate, singular, subjective, unique
   related: characteristic, distinctive, intimate, identifying, idiosyncratic, especial, express, special, specific, independent, nonconformist, self-directed, self-sufficient, custom, customized, specialized
   opposite: general, generic, popular, public, shared, universal
   near: broad, prevailing, prevalent, widespread, common, normal, regular, typical

5. serving to identify as belonging to an individual or group

   "the koala is peculiar to Australia"

   similar: characteristic, classic, diagnostic, discriminating, distinct, distinctive, distinguishing, identifying, individual, proper, symptomatic, typical
   related: idiosyncratic, identifiable, pronounced, unmistakable, general, generic, common, normal, regular, usual, especial, particular, special, specific, archetypal, model, paradigmatic
   opposite: atypical, nontypical, uncharacteristic, untypical

6. of a particular or exact sort

   "a matter of peculiar interest to us"

   similar: concrete, distinct, especial, express, precise, set, special, specific
   related: lone, only, separate, single, sole, solitary, distinctive, exclusive, individual, unique, limited, restricted, differentiated, specialized, given, specified
   opposite: nonspecific
   near: general, generalized, generic, nonexclusive, universal