curiosity

[ kyoo r-ee-os-i-tee ]
/ ˌkyʊər iˈɒs ɪ ti /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR curiosity ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural cu·ri·os·i·ties.

the desire to learn or know about anything; inquisitiveness.
a curious, rare, or novel thing.
a strange, curious, or interesting quality.
Archaic. carefulness; fastidiousness.

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Origin of curiosity

1350–1400; Middle English curiosite (< Anglo-French) < Latin cūriōsitās. See curious, -ity

OTHER WORDS FROM curiosity

non·cu·ri·os·i·ty, nouno·ver·cu·ri·os·i·ty, noun

Words nearby curiosity

curie's law, curie, marie, curie-weiss law, curio, curiosa, curiosity, curiosity killed the cat, curious, curite, curitiba, curium
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to curiosity

interest, concern, eagerness, inquisitiveness, regard, meddling, questioning, nosiness, investigation, prying, interestingness, intrusiveness, officiousness, marvel, nonesuch, bygone, oddity, prodigy, trinket, rarity

Example sentences from the Web for curiosity

British Dictionary definitions for curiosity

curiosity
/ (ˌkjʊərɪˈɒsɪtɪ) /

noun plural -ties

an eager desire to know; inquisitiveness
  1. the quality of being curious; strangeness
  2. (as modifier)the ring had curiosity value only
something strange or fascinating
a rare or strange object; curio
obsolete fastidiousness
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012