Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

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.

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

"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

adjective

  1. strange or peculiar

"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

Etymology

Origin of oddball

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

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

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 • Mar. 6, 2026

M31-2014-DS1 initially stood out as an "oddball," De says, but it now seems to be one of several examples, including NGC 6946-BH1.

From Science Daily • Feb. 14, 2026

It’s an engaging, slightly cartoonish story that shows off Ms. Cash’s talent for producing rapid-fire dialogue and amiably oddball characters.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 7, 2026

French, who plays 'widow' Debbie Fendon, said: "This is a sitcom about a very strange little oddball family who commit a massive fraud but pretend that it's no big deal."

From BBC • Jan. 7, 2026

A few minutes later the oddball vendor wheeled his wagon out onto the sidewalk.

From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.