misfit

American  

[mis-fit, mis-fit, mis-fit, mis-fit] / mɪsˈfɪt, mɪsˈfɪt, ˈmɪsˌfɪt, ˈmɪsˌfɪt /

verb (used with or without object)

misfitted, misfitting

1. to fit badly.

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noun

1. something that fits badly, such as a garment that is too large or too small.

2. a person who is not suited or is unable to adjust to the circumstances of a particular situation.

   She was a misfit in that job after her big promotion.

misfit British  

noun

1. a person not suited in behaviour or attitude to a particular social environment

2. something that does not fit or fits badly

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verb

1. to fail to fit or be fitted

Etymology

Origin of misfit

First recorded in 1815–25; mis- ¹ + fit ¹

Example Sentences

True crime author Howard Sounes described the gang as "ragamuffins and misfits".

From BBC

There is just enough character in the comedy to create stakes in the narrative; its misfit energy has fueled the screen’s bands of outsiders throughout the years.

From Los Angeles Times

Then, he said, as the show evolved, “these misfits became bullies.”

From Los Angeles Times

He learned through writing the book that his mother hailed from a “family of brilliant and daring misfits who had carved new paths in botany and medicine and left-wing politics,” he writes.

From Los Angeles Times

But the film’s noirish atmosphere of postwar anxiety and the movie’s cast of misfits and criminals mirrored the world she briefly inhabited.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• bohemian
• dissenter
• dropout
• eccentric
• freak
• oddball
• outsider
• weirdo