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

See Examples For:

odds and ends

New toy: Forky, fashioned from a plastic spork and other odds and ends.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 17, 2026

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

From Salon ● Feb. 18, 2026

She earned about $200 a week from the stand and used the money to help buy groceries and odds and ends for the children.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 3, 2025

"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

Delia patted her hip, and for the first time, I saw that she had a sort of tool belt full of odds and ends wrapped around her waist.

From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall