curio
Americannoun
plural
curiosnoun
Usage
What does curio mean? A curio is a small object that’s unusual, novel, or interesting, typically one that’s part of a collection of other such objects.A curio can also be called a curiosity, and in fact it’s a shortening of that word. In a curio collection, there is often a variety of objects. The requirement for an item’s addition to the collection is usually just that it has to be curious, meaning that it arouses curiosity or is interesting in some way.Just about any small thing that one finds interesting can be called a curio, but the word is most often applied to things like antique trinkets, small handcrafted items, or natural objects, like rocks, fossils, and shells.The word curio is commonly associated with the type of case often used to display such collections, which is called a curio cabinet and usually looks like a bookcase with glass doors. The term curio shop typically refers to a souvenir shop that sells curios and other novelty items.Example: When I travel, I like to buy things made by local artisans to add to my curio collection.
Etymology
Origin of curio
First recorded in 1850–55; shortened from curiosity
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The result is a faintly comic curio that hurtles along without much impact.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 8, 2026
Locals shuffled through makeshift aisles bounded by curio cabinets, wardrobes and home bars styled with faux cocktails for an imaginary party.
From Salon • Dec. 2, 2025
In his review, the BBC's Nicholas Barber called it a "pretentious, portentous curio", akin to someone recalling a "crazy dream".
From BBC • Aug. 22, 2024
As an album, “New Blue Sun” tends toward the curio — both endurance and Rorschach test.
From New York Times • Feb. 2, 2024
It was one of those weird roadside curio shops that sell lawn flamingos and wooden Indians and cement grizzly bears and stuff like that.
From "The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
