vagary

[vuh-gair-ee, vey-guh-ree]

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noun, plural va·gar·ies.

an unpredictable or erratic action, occurrence, course, or instance: the vagaries of weather; the vagaries of the economic scene.
a whimsical, wild, or unusual idea, desire, or action.

Origin of vagary

1565–75, in sense “wandering journey”; apparently < Latin vagārī to wander

Synonyms for vagary

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2. caprice, whim, quirk, crotchet.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for vagary

whim, quirk, humor, crotchet, whimsy, fancy, idea, impulse, notion, inconsistency, inconstancy

Examples from the Web for vagary

Historical Examples of vagary

How near they would pass depended on the vagary of the waves and the tide.
Blow The Man Down
Holman Day
The storm still raged, and she thought it was a vagary of the lightning.
Southern Stories
Various
What vagary had sent a girl who looked like this upon such a task!
Before the Dawn
Joseph Alexander Altsheler
If we could civilize our schools, we should have no mention of legislation by vagary.
The Ethics of Medical Homicide and Mutilation
Austin O'Malley
So, Stephen, after a lifetime of vagary and wandering, this is the result.
The Pillar of Light
Louis Tracy

British Dictionary definitions for vagary

vagary

noun plural -garies

an erratic or outlandish notion or action; whim

Word Origin for vagary

C16: probably from Latin vagārī to roam; compare Latin vagus vague

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 vagary

1570s, "a wandering, a roaming journey," probably from Latin vagari "to wander, roam, be unsettled, spread abroad," from vagus "roving, wandering" (see vague). Current meaning of "eccentric notion or conduct" (1620s) is from notion of mental wandering. Related: Vagaries.