quirk

American  

[kwurk] / kwɜrk /

noun

1. a peculiarity of action, behavior, or personality; mannerism.

   He is full of strange quirks.

2. a shift, subterfuge, or evasion; quibble.

3. a sudden twist or turn.

   He lost his money by a quirk of fate.

4. a flourish or showy stroke, as in writing.

5. Architecture.

   1. an acute angle or channel, as one dividing two parts of a molding or one dividing a flush bead from the adjoining surfaces.

   2. an area taken from a larger area, as a room or a plot of ground.

   3. an enclosure for this area.

6. Obsolete. a clever or witty remark; quip.

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adjective

1. formed with a quirk or channel, as a molding.

quirk British  

/ kwɜːk /

noun

1. an individual peculiarity of character; mannerism or foible

2. an unexpected twist or turn

   a quirk of fate

3. a continuous groove in an architectural moulding

4. a flourish, as in handwriting

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Related Words

See eccentricity.

Other Word Forms

• quirkily adverb
• quirkiness noun
• quirky adjective

Etymology

Origin of quirk

First recorded in 1540–50; origin uncertain

Example Sentences

To me as a kid, my father’s endless chatter was an embarrassing quirk of his personality.

From The Wall Street Journal

But if you’re willing to treat self-improvement the way you’d treat an investment—anchored in evidence, calibrated to incentives, and adjusted for your cognitive quirks—you can dramatically increase your odds of success.

From The Wall Street Journal

Despite its quirks, there is an appetite for something like Cake Picnic.

From The Wall Street Journal

The event, held at Esports Stadium in Arlington, Texas, promised to be unconventional with a roaring crowd and other quirks that eschewed typical chess etiquette.

From The Wall Street Journal

That Guthrie obsessively checks the naval news is seen as a mysterious quirk; no one poses the obvious question of whether someone dear to him might be at sea.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• aberration
• characteristic
• eccentricity
• foible
• habit
• idiosyncrasy
• kink
• mannerism
• peculiarity
• trait
• twist
• vagary