What does peculiarity mean?
A peculiarity is a feature that is distinctive, unusual, or characteristic of someone or something. The word often identifies a detail that sets a person, object, or situation apart: a peculiarity of the design, a peculiarity of human behaviour, or an unexpected peculiarity in the results. It can also refer more generally to strangeness or exceptional character. Because the word implies individuality rather than simply rarity, it is useful when describing the small details through which something becomes recognizable. In formal writing, “peculiarities” can describe noticeable irregularities or unusual characteristics of a system or pattern. The expression “peculiarities of human nature” is especially familiar and suggests the small, often amusing quirks that distinguish one person from another.
nounA distinctive, unusual, or individual feature of a person, thing, or situation. It can also refer to something strange or exceptional that distinguishes one thing from others.
- A distinctive or individual feature that sets a person, thing, or situation apart.
- An unusual, strange, or exceptional feature.
- The state of being unusual, exceptional, or distinctive.
"One peculiarity of the old building is that its windows open inwards rather than outwards."
"The scientist noted a peculiarity in the pattern of the data."
"Her talent for remembering strangers' names was one of her most appealing peculiarities."
The plural is commonly used for a person's distinctive traits or for unusual features of a system, object, or pattern.
"The report discusses several peculiarities in the data."
A peculiarity is the feature that makes something unmistakably itself.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does peculiarity come from?
The word entered English from Middle English, ultimately deriving from Latin peculiaris, meaning “of one's own,” “individual,” or “private.” Its modern sense of being unusual developed through the idea of something belonging exclusively to a particular person or thing. The related adjective peculiar uses the same Latin source, while the suffix -ity forms the modern noun. The word is also associated with the broader Latin family of terms relating to private property or possession.
Related word forms
How peculiarity is actually used
The word is neutral in register and can be used formally or informally. In its second sense, it may suggest mild strangeness rather than serious abnormality.
Easily confused with peculiarity
A peculiarity is an unusual or distinctive feature, whereas a particular usually means a specific individual item or detail.