oddball

American  

[od-bawl] / ˈɒdˌbɔl /

noun

1. a person or thing that is atypical, bizarre, eccentric, or nonconforming, especially one having beliefs that are unusual but harmless.

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adjective

1. whimsically free-spirited; eccentric; atypical.

   an oddball scheme.

oddball British  

/ ˈɒdˌbɔːl /

noun

1. Also called: odd bod.   odd fish.  a strange or eccentric person

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adjective

1. strange or peculiar

Etymology

Origin of oddball

An Americanism dating back to 1940–45; odd + ball ¹

Example Sentences

"For a long time, no one knew quite what to make of these oddball little blips of dimming," Bouma said.

From Science Daily

Graham’s tweaked, sensitive patriarch is tantalizingly far from the heartbreaking dad of “Adolescence” and the gloriously oddball Riseborough makes the most of her faint-voiced mom’s severity.

From Los Angeles Times

Samira finds a true community among the other neighborhood oddballs, which is true to Palmer’s experience of growing up in Robbins, Ill., outside of Chicago.

From Los Angeles Times

The U.S. is an oddball among Olympic nations, the only one that tallies up gold, silver, and bronze when it counts its medals at the end of the Games.

From The Wall Street Journal

But also eccentric, loner, rogue, oddball—even weirdo.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• eccentric