uncommon
Americanadjective
-
not common; unusual; rare.
an uncommon word.
-
unusual in amount or degree; above the ordinary.
an uncommon amount of mail.
- Synonyms:
- extraordinary
-
exceptional; remarkable.
- Synonyms:
- outstanding
adjective
-
outside or beyond normal experience, conditions, etc; unusual
-
in excess of what is normal
an uncommon liking for honey
adverb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of uncommon
Explanation
Anything uncommon is rare or unusual, like your uncommon last name, which all of your friends have trouble pronouncing. When you add the prefix un- to common, "occurring or done often," you get its opposite, uncommon. The word's earliest meaning was "not possessed in common," or not owned by everyone, from another meaning of common, "shared by the community." These days, people almost always mean "exceptional" or "not likely" when they describe something as uncommon: "It's uncommon for people to win the lottery, so don't waste your money!"
Vocabulary lists containing uncommon
Strange
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Strange
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Strange
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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.
Uncommon in a post-pandemic era of self-tape auditions, the open and in-person auditions attracted actors hungry for their big break and locals hoping to leave with a fun story to tell.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 20, 2026
The online retailer Uncommon Goods also has a made-in-USA section, and the retailer American Made Man specializes in goods made domestically.
From MarketWatch • Nov. 12, 2025
The sensors for the study were developed with the support of a Leitner Award for Uncommon Environmental Collaborations.
From Science Daily • Nov. 14, 2024
Uncommon Goods sells a pair all about the banning of books.
From Seattle Times • Jun. 5, 2024
You must grant me, said Uncommon Sense, that the proportion of men of sense, to the ignorant among mankind, is at least as twenty, thirty, or even forty-nine, to an hundred.
From The Life Of Thomas Paine, Vol. I. (of II) With A History of His Literary, Political and Religious Career in America France, and England; to which is added a Sketch of Paine by William Cobbett by Conway, Moncure Daniel
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.
