Heteroclite
[HET-er-ə-klahyt]
Part of speech: adjective
Origin: Latin, 16th century
1.
Abnormal or irregular.
Examples of Heteroclite in a sentence
"My grandfather held a number of heteroclite beliefs, including that one must always drown out heavy rain with loud music."
"My neighbor is a friendly but heteroclite person who feeds raccoons."
About Heteroclite
“Heteroclite” is based on the Latin “heteroclitus,” which was based on the Greek “ἑτερόκλιτος” (“heteróklitos”). That term combined “héteros,” meaning “different,” with “klínō,” meaning “to lean.”
Did you Know?
“Heteroclite” is usually an adjective describing behavior or opinions out of the ordinary. However, like its synonym “eccentric,” “heteroclite” can also be a noun describing a person who behaves in an irregular manner. British culture has long celebrated heteroclite people — or “heteroclites” — in works such as John Timbs’ 1866 book “English Eccentrics and Eccentricities,” and Edith Sitwell’s 1933 book “The English Eccentrics.” In more recent decades, the British newspaper The Telegraph ran a special obituary series called “Eccentric Lives.”
