Definition of "peculiar" in English

adjective

1. Out of the ordinary; odd; strange; unusual.

   • The sky had a peculiar appearance before the storm.
   • It would be rather peculiar to see a kangaroo hopping down a city street.

2. Common or usual for a certain place or circumstance; specific or particular.

   • Kangaroos are peculiar to Australia.

3. (dated) One's own; belonging solely or especially to an individual; not shared or possessed by others.

4. (dated) Particular; individual; special; appropriate.

noun

1. That which is peculiar; a sole or exclusive property; a prerogative; a characteristic.

   • before 1716, Robert South, Twelve Sermons If anything can legalize revenge, it should be injury from an extremely obliged person; but revenge is so absolutely the peculiar of heaven.

2. (UK, canon law) an ecclesiastical district, parish, chapel or church outside the jurisdiction of the bishop of the diocese in which it is situated.