odds and ends

American  

noun

1. miscellaneous items, matters, etc.

2. fragments; remnants; scraps; bits.

---

odds and ends British  

plural noun

1. miscellaneous items or articles

---

odds and ends Idioms  

1. Miscellaneous items, fragments and remnants, as in I've finished putting everything away, except for a few odds and ends. This expression may have originated as odd ends in the mid-1500s, meaning “short leftovers of some material” (such as lumber or cloth). It had acquired its present form and meaning by the mid-1700s.

---

Etymology

Origin of odds and ends

First recorded in 1740–50

Example Sentences

Her son turns out to be Mr. Nivola’s character, the kind of guy who has a stash of $100 bills in a kitchen drawer for odds and ends.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 26, 2026

Suddenly, what was once a pile of odds and ends is a velvety, spoon-coating soup.

From Salon • Feb. 18, 2026

"Small independents like myself are only allowed to order from a list of random mismatched odds and ends that the big shops clearly didn't want," she said.

From BBC • Jul. 11, 2025

“We have outtakes, and some odds and ends, but there’s nothing new,” counters McIntosh.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 8, 2025

It seemed this was a place where odds and ends were kept too; every few feet, her toe stubbed against an old broom or mop, a broken chair long since forgotten.

From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray