different between weird vs outrageous
weird
English
Alternative forms
- weïrd, wierd (obsolete)
- weyard, weyward (obsolete, Shakespeare)
Etymology
From Middle English werde, wierde, wirde, wyrede, wurde, from Old English wyrd (“fate”), from Proto-West Germanic *wurdi, from Proto-Germanic *wurdiz, from Proto-Indo-European *wert- (“to turn, wind”). Cognate with Icelandic urður (“fate”). Related to Old English weorþan (“to become”). Doublet of wyrd. More at worth.
Weird was extinct by the 16th century in English. It survived in Scots, whence Shakespeare borrowed it in naming the Weird Sisters, reintroducing it to English. The senses "abnormal", "strange" etc. arose via reinterpretation of Weird Sisters and date from after this reintroduction.
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA(key): /?w??d/, /?wi??d/
- (US) IPA(key): /?wi?d/, /?w??d/
- Rhymes: -??(r)d
Adjective
weird (comparative weirder, superlative weirdest)
- Having an unusually strange character or behaviour.
- Deviating from the normal; bizarre.
- (archaic) Of or pertaining to the Fates.
- (Can we find and add a quotation to this entry?)
- (archaic) Connected with fate or destiny; able to influence fate.
- (archaic) Of or pertaining to witches or witchcraft; supernatural; unearthly; suggestive of witches, witchcraft, or unearthliness; wild; uncanny.
- Those sweet, low tones, that seemed like a weird incantation.
- 1912, Victor Whitechurch, Thrilling Stories of the Railway
- Naphtha lamps shed a weird light over a busy scene, for the work was being continued night and day. A score or so of sturdy navvies were shovelling and picking along the track.
- (archaic) Having supernatural or preternatural power.
Synonyms
- (having supernatural or preternatural power): eerie, spooky, uncanny
- (unusually strange in character or behaviour): odd, oddball, peculiar, strange, whacko; see also Thesaurus:insane
- (deviating from the normal): bizarre, fremd, odd, out of the ordinary, strange; see also Thesaurus:strange
- (of or pertaining to the Fates): fateful
Derived terms
Translations
Noun
weird (plural weirds)
- (archaic) Fate; destiny; luck.
- A prediction.
- (obsolete, Scotland) A spell or charm.
- 1813, Walter Scott, The Bridal of Triermain
- Thou shalt bear thy penance lone
In the Valley of Saint John,
And this weird shall overtake thee
- Thou shalt bear thy penance lone
- 1813, Walter Scott, The Bridal of Triermain
- That which comes to pass; a fact.
- (archaic, in the plural) The Fates (personified).
Synonyms
- (fate; destiny): kismet, lot, orlay, wyrd
- (luck): fortune, luck; see also Thesaurus:luck
- (prediction): foretale, foretelling, prognostication; see also Thesaurus:prediction
- (spell or charm): enchantment, incantation, cantrip
- (fact):
- (The Fates): The Norns
Derived terms
- dree one’s weird
- weirdless
Verb
weird (third-person singular simple present weirds, present participle weirding, simple past and past participle weirded)
- (transitive) To destine; doom; change by witchcraft or sorcery.
- (transitive) To warn solemnly; adjure.
Adverb
weird (not comparable)
- (nonstandard) In a strange manner. [from 1970s]
Usage notes
As an adverb, weird is only used to modify verbs, and is always positioned after the verb it modifies. Unlike weirdly it cannot modify an adjective (as in "She was weirdly generous.") or an entire sentence (as in "Weirdly, no-one spoke up.").
Synonyms
- funny (adverb), strangely, weirdly
Anagrams
- Dwire, wider, wierd, wired, wride, wried
French
Etymology
Borrowed from English weird.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /wi?d/
Adjective
weird (plural weirds)
- (Quebec, Louisiana, informal) weird, bizarre.
Scots
Alternative forms
- wierd
Etymology
From Old English wyrd (“fate, destiny”), from Proto-Germanic *wurdiz.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /wird/, [wi?rd]
Noun
weird (plural weirds)
- fate, fortune, destiny, one's own particular fate or appointed lot
- event destined to happen, a god's decree, omen, prophecy, prediction
- wizard, warlock, one having deep or supernatural skill or knowledge
Derived terms
Adjective
weird (comparative mair weird, superlative maist weird)
- troublesome, mischievous, harmful
Verb
weird (third-person singular present weirds, present participle weirdin, past weirdit, past participle weirdit)
- to ordain by fate, destine, assign a specific fate or fortune to, allot
- to imprecate, invoke
- to prophesy, prognosticate the fate of, warn ominously
weird From the web:
- what weird holiday is today
- what weird national holiday is today
- what weird holiday is tomorrow
- what weird means
- what weird fruit fights cholesterol
- what weird day is today
- what weird holiday is today 2021
- what weird things are illegal
outrageous
English
Alternative forms
- outragious (archaic)
Etymology
From Anglo-Norman outrageus, Middle French outrageus, from outrage; equivalent to outrage +? -ous.
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA(key): /a?t??e?d??s/
- Rhymes: -e?d??s
Adjective
outrageous (comparative more outrageous, superlative most outrageous)
- Violating morality or decency; provoking indignation or affront. [from 14th c.]
- c. 1601, William Shakespeare, Hamlet, First Folio 1623:
- To be, or not to be, that is the Question: / Whether 'tis Nobler in the minde to suffer / The Slings and Arrowes of outragious Fortune, / Or to take Armes against a Sea of troubles, / And by opposing end them [...].
- 2011, Paul Wilson, The Guardian, 19 Oct 2011:
- The Irish-French rugby union whistler Alain Rolland was roundly condemned for his outrageous decision that lifting a player into the air then turning him over so he falls on his head or neck amounted to dangerous play.
- c. 1601, William Shakespeare, Hamlet, First Folio 1623:
- Transgressing reasonable limits; extravagant, immoderate. [from 14th c.]
- 2004, David Smith, The Observer, 19 Dec 2004:
- Audience members praised McKellen, best known for Shakespearean roles and as Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings, for his show-stealing turn as Twankey in a series of outrageous glitzy dresses.
- 2004, David Smith, The Observer, 19 Dec 2004:
- Shocking; exceeding conventional behaviour; provocative. [from 18th c.]
- 2001, Imogen Tilden, The Guardian, 8 Dec 2001:
- "It's something I really am quite nervous about," he admits, before adding, with relish: "You have to be a bit outrageous and challenging sometimes."
- 2001, Imogen Tilden, The Guardian, 8 Dec 2001:
- (now rare) Fierce, violent. [from 14th c.]
- 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, III.4:
- For els my feeble vessell, crazd and crackt / Through thy strong buffets and outrageous blowes, / Cannot endure, but needes it must be wrackt [...].
- 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, III.4:
Derived terms
- outrageously
- outrageousness
Related terms
- outrage
Translations
Further reading
- outrageous in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
- outrageous in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
outrageous From the web:
- what outrageous means
- what outrageous you
- what's outrageous in german
- outrageous what does it mean
- outrageous what is the definition
- what is outrageous in tagalog
- what do outrageous mean
- what does outrageous
you may also like
- weird vs outrageous
- strangeness vs eccentricity
- sphere vs compass
- present vs fee
- undemonstrative vs spiritless
- constraint vs shrinking
- headland vs bank
- fix vs recommend
- brawn vs sturdiness
- lordly vs storied
- council vs hearing
- horrible vs intolerable
- friendship vs amicability
- rig vs raiment
- outrage vs misery
- inclination vs genius
- consignment vs dispensation
- alternative vs preference
- veteran vs skilful
- engaging vs simple