peculiar
Definitions
Strange, unusual, or hard to explain; odd.
奇特的，奇怪的，古怪的。
Belonging only to a particular person, place, or thing; distinctive or characteristic (usually 'peculiar to').
（某人/某地/某物）特有的，独有的，专属的（通常用 peculiar to）。
Root Breakdown
Root-derivedFrom Latin pecūlium 'private property' (originally one's own cattle or savings, from pecū 'cattle'). pecūliāris meant 'belonging to one person privately, one's own.' That older sense survives in 'a custom peculiar to a region' (special to it). But something that is yours alone is unlike everyone else's — so the meaning drifted from 'one's own' to 'distinctive' to 'unusual' to 'strange,' which is now the everyday sense.
Root pecun still carries 4 more wordsWhy It Means This
Peculiar is two words in one, and the link is the idea of 'one's own.' Latin pecūlium was the private stash (originally a few cattle) a slave or son could keep apart from the master's estate; pecūliāris meant 'privately one's own.' English first used peculiar this way — 'peculiar to,' meaning found only here, characteristic of. But uniqueness easily tips into oddness: if a trait belongs to one person alone, it stands out, looks strange. By the 1600s 'peculiar' had also come to mean 'odd, eccentric,' the sense most people reach for today.
Usage Guide
Two senses, told apart by syntax: standing alone, peculiar means 'strange' (a peculiar smell, something peculiar about him). Followed by 'to,' it means 'unique to / characteristic of' (a dialect peculiar to the islands, problems peculiar to big cities). 'Peculiarly' as an adverb usually means 'especially/oddly' (peculiarly British). When you mean 'special to,' always keep the 'to.'
Example Sentences
- 1.
There was a peculiar smell coming from the kitchen.
- 2.
He has a peculiar way of laughing that everyone notices.
- 3.
This dance style is peculiar to the southern villages.
- 4.
She felt a peculiar mix of excitement and dread.
Easily Confused
peculiar vs particular — both can mean 'specific to,' but particular is neutral ('this particular case') while peculiar carries the extra flavour of 'uniquely its own,' and on its own usually means 'strange.' Don't use peculiar where you just mean 'specific': say 'a particular reason,' not 'a peculiar reason,' unless the reason is genuinely odd.
Synonym Comparison
- peculiar — odd in a hard-to-pin-down way; also 'unique to'
- strange — broadest word for 'not normal/familiar'
- weird — informal, stronger, often unsettling
- odd — mild, everyday 'not quite right'
- eccentric — (of people) charmingly unconventional