quirk

[ kwurk ]

/ kwɜrk /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR quirk ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a peculiarity of action, behavior, or personality; mannerism: He is full of strange quirks.

a shift, subterfuge, or evasion; quibble.

a sudden twist or turn: He lost his money by a quirk of fate.

a flourish or showy stroke, as in writing.

Architecture.

an acute angle or channel, as one dividing two parts of a molding or one dividing a flush bead from the adjoining surfaces.
an area taken from a larger area, as a room or a plot of ground.
an enclosure for this area.

Obsolete. a clever or witty remark; quip.

adjective

formed with a quirk or channel, as a molding.

Nearby words

quipus, quire, quirinal, quirinus, quirites, quirk, quirky, quirt, quis custodiet ipsos custodes?, quis separabit?, quisling

Origin of quirk

First recorded in 1540–50; origin uncertain

SYNONYMS FOR quirk

1 See eccentricity.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR quirk ON THESAURUS.COM

Can be confusedquark quirk

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for quirk

Kevin Fallon on the quirk of history that demands two swearing-in ceremonies for this particular president.
Obama’s Secret Sunday Inauguration: Everything You Need to Know|Kevin Fallon|January 20, 2013|DAILY BEAST
As a tempting virgin she was able to live long enough to be saved, but this was the quirk of a market controlled by foreigners.
‘Taken 2’s’ Crazy Sexual Politics!|Tracy Quan|October 11, 2012|DAILY BEAST
A quirk in two political-prediction markets has created a (practically) no-lose investment opportunity—almost $100, for free.
How to Make Free Money Betting on the 2012 Presidential Election|Alex Klein|September 6, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Banville seemed to be running on empty with that book, but Quirk has energized him (four Quirke novels since 2006).
Can Pulp Win the Booker?|Allen Barra|September 7, 2011|DAILY BEAST

With a clever brush Madame put a quirk in his eyebrows that completed the portrait.
Molly Brown's College Friends|Nell Speed
Was it the strong connection of contrast, or was it a quirk of my brain?
The Story of an Untold Love|Paul Leicester Ford
Quirk dashed to his assistance with about the same number of men, and the enemy was driven completely away.
History of Morgan's Cavalry|Basil W. Duke
Massa Quirk mighty good just on de ebe of lebin de business.
The Brother Clerks|Xariffa
Quirk rose from his seat, and took two or three turns about the room in silence, Gammon watching him calmly.
Ten Thousand a-Year. Volume 1.|Samuel Warren

British Dictionary definitions for quirk

quirk

/ (kwɜːk) /

noun

an individual peculiarity of character; mannerism or foible

an unexpected twist or turna quirk of fate

a continuous groove in an architectural moulding

a flourish, as in handwriting

Derived Formsquirky, adjectivequirkily, adverbquirkiness, noun

Word Origin for quirk

C16: of unknown origin

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

Word Origin and History for quirk

quirk

1560s, "quibble, evasion," of unknown origin, perhaps connected to German quer (see queer (adj.)) via notion of twisting and slanting; but its earliest appearance in western England dialect seems to argue against this source. Perhaps originally a technical term for a twist or flourish in weaving. Sense of "peculiarity" is c.1600.

quirk

noun

adjective

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Origin of quirk

Examples from the Web for quirk

British Dictionary definitions for quirk

quirk

noun

Word Origin for quirk

Word Origin and History for quirk

quirk