noun
oddball
AHD-bawl
noun
1
A person who behaves in a strange or eccentric way.
"The office oddball kept a collection of vintage typewriters on his desk."
adj
1
Strange or unconventional; not mainstream.
"They released an oddball comedy that flopped in theaters but found a cult following later."
How to Use Oddball
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA quirky, unconventional person or thing.
Common pairings
a lovable oddball
an oddball comedy
an oddball theory
Word Forms
oddballs plural
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The office _____ kept a collection of vintage typewriters on his desk.
Etymology
A compound of "odd" and "ball" that first appeared describing a bonus ball in 1930s pinball-style games, before shifting to describe eccentric people by the 1940s.