Synonyms for idiosyncrasy
Most common
All synonyms
Noun
1. Characteristic — A behavior or way of thinking that is characteristic of a person or a group
characteristic, eccentricity, quirk, peculiarity, oddity, individuality, habit, temperament, singularity, constitution, specialty US AU CA, speciality UK, race, foible, idiocrasy, vagary, particularity
Definitions
- n. 1
A behavior or way of thinking that is characteristic of a person or a group.
Related words
- Word family
- idiosyncratic
- Other spellings
- idiosyncracy
Forms
- Plural
- idiosyncrasies → characteristics, eccentricities, quirks, peculiarities…
Example sentences
- characteristic The defiant manner is characteristic of teenagers.
- quirk The fact that the money came just then was a quirk of fate.
- eccentricity Not all eccentricity is mental illness.
- peculiarity I have this peculiarity: I always spoil everything.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| idiosyncrasy | steady | |
| characteristic | falling | |
| quirk | rising | |
| eccentricity | falling | |
| peculiarity | falling |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 4 letters
- race1
- 5 letters
- habit2, quirk1
- 6 letters
- oddity3, foible2, vagary3
- 9 letters
- specialty3, idiocrasy
- 10 letters
- speciality5
- 11 letters
- temperament3, singularity5, peculiarity6
- 12 letters
- constitution4, eccentricity5
- 13 letters
- individuality7, particularity6
- 14 letters
- characteristic5
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (habit2 = 2 syllables).