bizarre
1 of 2adjective
bi·zarre bə-ˈzär 
: strikingly out of the ordinary: such as
a
: odd, extravagant, or eccentric in style or mode
His behavior was bizarre.
bizarre stories
a bizarre outfit
b
: involving sensational contrasts or incongruities
the bizarre timidity of a tall, strapping young man
bizarrely adverb
bizarreness noun
bizarre
2 of 2noun
botany : a flower with atypical striped marking
Synonyms
Adjective
- absurd
- crazy
- fanciful
- fantastic
- fantastical
- foolish
- insane
- nonsensical
- preposterous
- unreal
- wild
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Adjective I just heard the most bizarre story. She wore a bizarre outfit.
Recent Examples on the Web
Jen Juneau, Peoplemag, 23 Aug. 2022 TikToks spotlight the more bizarre differences between the two countries. Yasmeen Serhan, The Atlantic, 4 July 2022 In the meantime, exobiologists are taking their cues from some of the more bizarre life forms on our home-world. Manasee Wagh, Popular Mechanics, 20 June 2022 But this is much more bizarre and completely connected to his PTSD. Wilson Chapman, Variety, 5 June 2022 It's sort of been obscured by history, partly because of much more bizarre Suns' playoff exits to follow, but also because the 1981 postseason was just plain weird, with the 40-42 Houston Rockets emerging as the Western Conference champions. The Arizona Republic, 15 May 2022 Even more bizarre, her nightgown, a wedding gift from Depp’s detox doctor, was in tatters, with raw meat wrapped inside the pieces. Tatiana Siegel, Rolling Stone, 5 May 2022 One of the more bizarre aspects of the boom in surgery culture is the cult of young women setting up anonymous pages that display their obsession with famous cosmetic surgeons and transforming their bodies. Symeon Brown, refinery29.com, 14 Mar. 2022 The charges mark another bizarre chapter in a seemingly endless fight over election administration in Wisconsin, a key battleground state as the 2024 presidential election approaches. Fox News, 2 Sep. 2022 Joan Meiners, The Arizona Republic, 15 June 2022 Meatball short film aside, this is a great distillation of Sherman's bizarre, off-putting body humor. Andy Hoglund, EW.com, 10 Apr. 2022 China’s Bored Wukong collection, which launched in November last year, is an anthology of 390 cartoon monkey portraits in which each ape sports a bizarre and, to some degree, unique array of accessories. Eamon Barrett, Fortune, 15 Feb. 2022 His party-boy energy borders on the maniacal, and his club-ready rhythms flirt with the bizarre. Billboard Staff, Billboard, 11 Feb. 2022 In 2018, the podcast famously (or notoriously) made headlines when Tesla CEO Elon Musk appeared, sipping whiskey and smoking weed with Rogan for a bizarre, 2.5-hour live interview. Allison Morrow, CNN, 1 Feb. 2022 The 212 bronze, iron and granite sculptures examine the human form, ranging from the beautiful to the bizarre. David Nikel, Forbes, 15 Oct. 2021 For mainstream media outlets, which endlessly covered Trump’s 2016 campaign as a bizarre and (for them, at least) lucrative spectacle, Trump’s fitful public re-emergence is something of a test. Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 13 Sep. 2021 There’s a mix of the old-fashioned bizarre with rampant, of-the-moment social anxiety. Marshall Heyman, Vulture, 25 Aug. 2021 See More
Adjective
As her behavior grows more and more bizarre, the boys begin to wonder whether the woman beneath the gauze is their mom at all. Jen Juneau, Peoplemag, 23 Aug. 2022 TikToks spotlight the more bizarre differences between the two countries. Yasmeen Serhan, The Atlantic, 4 July 2022 In the meantime, exobiologists are taking their cues from some of the more bizarre life forms on our home-world. Manasee Wagh, Popular Mechanics, 20 June 2022 But this is much more bizarre and completely connected to his PTSD. Wilson Chapman, Variety, 5 June 2022 It's sort of been obscured by history, partly because of much more bizarre Suns' playoff exits to follow, but also because the 1981 postseason was just plain weird, with the 40-42 Houston Rockets emerging as the Western Conference champions. The Arizona Republic, 15 May 2022 Even more bizarre, her nightgown, a wedding gift from Depp’s detox doctor, was in tatters, with raw meat wrapped inside the pieces. Tatiana Siegel, Rolling Stone, 5 May 2022 One of the more bizarre aspects of the boom in surgery culture is the cult of young women setting up anonymous pages that display their obsession with famous cosmetic surgeons and transforming their bodies. Symeon Brown, refinery29.com, 14 Mar. 2022 The charges mark another bizarre chapter in a seemingly endless fight over election administration in Wisconsin, a key battleground state as the 2024 presidential election approaches. Fox News, 2 Sep. 2022 Noun
Monsoon storms also bring a variety of other bizarre and often amusingly named weather threats, including haboobs, downbursts, gustnadoes, earth fissures and landslides. Joan Meiners, The Arizona Republic, 15 June 2022 Meatball short film aside, this is a great distillation of Sherman's bizarre, off-putting body humor. Andy Hoglund, EW.com, 10 Apr. 2022 China’s Bored Wukong collection, which launched in November last year, is an anthology of 390 cartoon monkey portraits in which each ape sports a bizarre and, to some degree, unique array of accessories. Eamon Barrett, Fortune, 15 Feb. 2022 His party-boy energy borders on the maniacal, and his club-ready rhythms flirt with the bizarre. Billboard Staff, Billboard, 11 Feb. 2022 In 2018, the podcast famously (or notoriously) made headlines when Tesla CEO Elon Musk appeared, sipping whiskey and smoking weed with Rogan for a bizarre, 2.5-hour live interview. Allison Morrow, CNN, 1 Feb. 2022 The 212 bronze, iron and granite sculptures examine the human form, ranging from the beautiful to the bizarre. David Nikel, Forbes, 15 Oct. 2021 For mainstream media outlets, which endlessly covered Trump’s 2016 campaign as a bizarre and (for them, at least) lucrative spectacle, Trump’s fitful public re-emergence is something of a test. Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 13 Sep. 2021 There’s a mix of the old-fashioned bizarre with rampant, of-the-moment social anxiety. Marshall Heyman, Vulture, 25 Aug. 2021 See More Word History
Etymology
Adjective
French, from Italian bizzarro
Noun
noun derivative of bizarre entry 1
First Known Use
Adjective
circa 1648, in the meaning defined above
Noun
circa 1753, in the meaning defined above
Kids Definition
bizarre
adjective
bi·zarre bə-ˈzär
: very strange or odd
bizarre
adjective
1
as in absurd
conceived or made without regard for reason or reality a bizarre invention that no one could figure out how to use Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- absurd
- insane
- unreal
- foolish
- strange
- crazy
- fantastical
- ridiculous
- fantastic
- fanciful
- nonsensical
- weird
- grotesque
- odd
- peculiar
- preposterous
- incredible
- curious
- wild
- funny
- unbelievable
- implausible
- eccentric
- inconceivable
- surreal
- unimaginable
- wacky
- ludicrous
- unthinkable
- quirky
- extravagant
- outlandish
- outré
- bizarro
- off the wall
- farcical
- nightmarish
- kooky
- screwy
- whacky
- laughable
- kinky
- quaint
- dreamlike
- queer
- far-out
- way-out
- kookie
- queerish
- Alice-in-Wonderland
- Kafkaesque
- out-of-the-way
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- reasonable
- realistic
2
as in strange
different from the ordinary in a way that causes curiosity or suspicion he gave a bizarre excuse for getting home so late Synonyms & Similar Words
- strange
- weird
- odd
- funny
- peculiar
- curious
- erratic
- remarkable
- unusual
- crazy
- eccentric
- abnormal
- unique
- wacky
- quirky
- outré
- outlandish
- bizarro
- offbeat
- screwy
- outrageous
- kooky
- wild
- whacky
- kinky
- funky
- weirdo
- unconventional
- quaint
- off-the-wall
- extraordinary
- fantastical
- uncommon
- off-kilter
- fantastic
- queer
- far-out
- way-out
- kookie
- freaky
- freakish
- rare
- queerish
- outstanding
- shocking
- cranky
- rum
- freak
- out-of-the-way
- aberrant
- striking
- atypical
- puzzling
- baffling
- phantasmagoric
- noticeable
- spaced-out
- bewildering
- conspicuous
- perplexing
- prominent
- flaky
- notable
- idiosyncratic
- phenomenal
- singular
- salient
- phantasmagorical
- unorthodox
- mystifying
- atrocious
- unwonted
- confounding
- uncustomary
- out-there
- nonconformist
- nonmainstream
- addlepated
- crotchety
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- typical
- normal
- usual
- ordinary
- unremarkable
- commonplace
- prosaic
- standard
- routine
- average
- everyday
- conventional
- unexceptional
- garden
- familiar
- conservative
- predictable
- common
- run-of-the-mill
- conformist
- workaday
- frequent
- regular
- customary
- expected
- habitual
- knee-jerk
- wonted
Synonym Chooser
The words fantastic and grotesque are common synonyms of bizarre. While all three words mean "conceived, made, or carried out without adherence to truth or reality," bizarre applies to the sensationally strange and implies violence of contrast or incongruity of combination.
a bizarre medieval castle in the heart of a modern city
While the synonyms fantastic and bizarre are close in meaning, fantastic may connote extravagance in conception or ingenuity of decorative invention.
dreamed up fantastic rumors
Although the words grotesque and bizarre have much in common, grotesque may apply to what is conventionally ugly but artistically effective or it may connote ludicrous awkwardness or incongruity often with sinister or tragic overtones.
grotesque statues on the cathedral
though grieving, she made a grotesque attempt at a smile