idiosyncrasy

[ id-ee-uh-sing-kruh-see, -sin- ]

noun

, plural id·i·o·syn·cra·sies.

1. a characteristic, habit, mannerism, or the like, that is peculiar to an individual.

   Synonyms: quirk, peculiarity

2. the physical constitution peculiar to an individual.
3. a peculiarity of the physical or the mental constitution, especially susceptibility toward drugs, food, etc. Compare allergy ( def 1 ).

idiosyncrasy

/ ˌɪdɪəʊˈsɪŋkrəsɪ /

noun

1. a tendency, type of behaviour, mannerism, etc, of a specific person; quirk
2. the composite physical or psychological make-up of a specific person
3. an abnormal reaction of an individual to specific foods, drugs, or other agents

Other Words From

• id·i·o·syn·crat·ic [id-ee-oh-sin-, krat, -ik, -sing-], adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of idiosyncrasy¹

First recorded in 1595–1605; from Greek idiosynkrāsía, equivalent to idio- idio- + syn- syn- + krâs(is) “a blending” + -ia -y ³

Word History and Origins

Origin of idiosyncrasy¹

C17: from Greek idiosunkrasia, from idio- + sunkrasis mixture, temperament, from sun- syn- + kerannunai to mingle

Synonym Study

See eccentricity.

Example Sentences

They’ll have new idiosyncrasies that you’ll come to love just as much as the old ones.

From Washington Post

Chicago is an idiosyncrasy or an exception to the rule, where the O is left intact and the -an is added afterward.

From Popular-Science

So at each stop, I’ll pick up some supplies and can take advantage of a bit of variety and the idiosyncrasies of local offerings, including foods that can’t be sent in the mail, like cheese.

From Outside Online

Such idiosyncrasies, like the weird complexity and variability of smell, now turn out vital to understanding the brain—how it maneuvers an organism through a landscape of fast-changing molecular combinations.

From Nautilus

While some of these idiosyncrasies can be explained by gravitational interactions in systems with multiple planets, there might be conditions where planets could form in bizarre orbits.

From Ars Technica

In hay fever certain patients present a peculiar idiosyncrasy, often inherited, almost always neuroarthritic.

From Project Gutenberg

What reveals perhaps more distinctly than anything else Chopin's idiosyncrasy is his friendship for Titus Woyciechowski.

From Project Gutenberg

He had a constitutional dislike for falsehoods, which was perhaps not so much a virtue as an idiosyncrasy.

From Project Gutenberg

They chatted volubly over this idiosyncrasy, and even laughed at it, but quite decorously so that our feelings might be spared.

From Project Gutenberg

This very singular idiosyncrasy he attributed to a fright when he was an infant in the arms of his nurse.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• eccentricity
• mannerism
• peculiarity
• trait