Etymology
Origin of whimsicality
Explanation
When you decide to do something silly or unexpected just because it's fun and interesting rather than practical, you're displaying whimsicality! This means you're embracing the playful, unpredictable side of life. Whimsicality is the art of making choices based on fun and spontaneity rather than practicality. This whimsical trait shines through in the delight of wearing a brightly colored outfit on a gray day or taking a different route home just to explore. You’ll often find whimsicality in art that mixes unusual colors and shapes or in stories where reality takes a playful twist.
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.
Mixing the ironic whimsicality of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” with the premise and structure of “The Monkees,” “Conchords” was twice as delightful when it landed for being so unexpected and unpredictable.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 23, 2022
Wilson's delicate whimsicality, and the reflective disposition that unquestionably fuels her formidable talent, can occasionally let songs flatline longer than they should.
From The Guardian • Jul. 11, 2013
Her gracious, willful whimsicality allows her to keep moving as if life were a lovely, lovely, dream even when all the evidence screams that the opposite is true.
From New York Times • Apr. 18, 2013
The intruder in the story is really Death, which trumps all his conversational whimsicality.
From Seattle Times • Jul. 19, 2012
Its deep innerness, its passionate aspiration, its whimsicality, and its quaint decorative exuberance, expressed alike in angels and gargoyles, found and touched a vibrating chord in his heart.
From William Blake A Study of His Life and Art Work by Langridge, Irene
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.
