quirk

[ kwurk ]

noun

1. a peculiarity of action, behavior, or personality; mannerism:

   He is full of strange quirks.

2. a shift, subterfuge, or evasion; quibble.
3. a sudden twist or turn:

   He lost his money by a quirk of fate.

4. a flourish or showy stroke, as in writing.
5. Architecture.
   1. an acute angle or channel, as one dividing two parts of a molding or one dividing a flush bead from the adjoining surfaces.
   2. an area taken from a larger area, as a room or a plot of ground.
   3. an enclosure for this area.
6. Obsolete. a clever or witty remark; quip.

adjective

1. formed with a quirk or channel, as a molding.

quirk

/ kwɜːk /

noun

1. an individual peculiarity of character; mannerism or foible
2. an unexpected twist or turn

   a quirk of fate

3. a continuous groove in an architectural moulding
4. a flourish, as in handwriting

Derived Forms

• ˈquirkily, adverb
• ˈquirkiness, noun
• ˈquirky, adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of quirk¹

First recorded in 1540–50; origin uncertain

Word History and Origins

Origin of quirk¹

C16: of unknown origin

Synonym Study

See eccentricity.

Example Sentences

There was even a statistical quirk from his final game as four England players scored their first senior goals as the Republic of Ireland subsided.

From BBC

A quirk in the fossilized sacrum, a bone in the lower back, means that the animal’s neck curves slightly to the left, giving the impression of a dinosaur turning its head curiously toward an unexpected sight.

From Los Angeles Times

A quirk of the fixture list – and Sporting’s refusal to let Amorim leave immediately – created the story.

From BBC

This rule quirk potentially decided the race, and certainly disadvantaged Lando Norris and George Russell to the benefit of Max Verstappen and the Alpine drivers, who eventually finished on the podium.

From BBC

But there’s a peculiar quirk to campaigning here: Montana may be the country’s fourth-largest state by area, but it’s only the 44th largest by population.

From Slate

Related Words

• aberration
• characteristic
• eccentricity
• foible
• habit
• idiosyncrasy
• kink
• mannerism
• peculiarity
• trait
• twist
• vagary