adjective

• 1Not habitually or commonly occurring or done.

  ‘the government has taken the unusual step of calling home its ambassador’

  More example sentences

  • ‘it was unusual for Dennis to be late’
  • ‘It might sound arrogant to those of a secular persuasion but it is not unusual.’
  • ‘It is not unusual for places to be catapulted to stardom thanks to the medium of TV or cinema.’
  • ‘Clearly, this is a river bank and it is not unusual to see rats on a river bank.’
  • ‘It is not unusual for him to misunderstand a question and give an answer bearing no relation to it.’
  • ‘It was not unusual for highly intelligent men to be attracted to cults or sects, she said.’
  • ‘It is not unusual for a trainer to bring a horse to a course, then find that the ground is unsuitable.’
  • ‘It is not unusual to see smokers dragging on cigarettes between mouthfuls at meals.’
  • ‘The court heard that it was not unusual for him to go out and drink 20 pints in an evening.’
  • ‘It is also classic eagle country, and it is not unusual to spot one or two soaring overhead.’
  • ‘It is not unusual for me to spend about a quarter of the year away from home.’
  • ‘The fears prompted them to take the unusual step of releasing his details and picture.’
  • ‘He took the unusual step of urging Americans not to buy petrol if they don't have to.’
  • ‘Today they took the unusual step of releasing a photograph in an effort to trace him.’
  • ‘The Alliance has taken the unusual step of warning its members to hold their fire.’
  • ‘He is a captain so it maybe a little unusual but more common than what you think.’
  • ‘These range from the common such as rib fractures to the more unusual such as pneumoscrotum.’
  • ‘He tried not to isolate and figure out what the unusual stench emanating from the earpiece was.’
  • ‘So falls are not unusual although falls of this sort of magnitude are relatively rare.’
  • ‘Theft is nothing unusual at the shop, which suffers shoplifting on a daily basis.’
  • ‘It was indeed a very unusual thing to see such a large assembly of people in Westhoughton at so early an hour.’

  Synonyms

  uncommon, abnormal, atypical, unexpected, surprising, unfamiliar, unwonted, different

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  1. 1.1Remarkable or interesting because different from or better than others.
     ‘a man of unusual talent’
     More example sentences

     • ‘We'd also be interested to know of any other sporting stars with unusual middle names.’
     • ‘Now the speculation has begun about what led the proud parents to choose such an unusual name.’
     • ‘He said my surname was an unusual name and did I know my ancestors had invented the Biro pen.’
     • ‘In publishing, it is easy to mistake the effects of chance for those of unusual talent.’
     • ‘The evening ended with a game of charades with some very unusual and funny pub names to guess.’
     • ‘What do you think of the name and the trend of celebrities giving their kids unusual names?’
     • ‘It was an unusual name, and Cornwell had known for years that it would be no hard task to look it up.’
     • ‘We can look after you, and make sure that you face no problems because of your unusual talents.’
     • ‘What made this extraordinary story even more unusual is that Lee was a woman.’
     • ‘It seems many of us are suckers for a big name, a logo and a fancy box or unusual design.’
     • ‘She used her skills as a graphic artist to create unusual images to give each a unique look.’
     • ‘Your imagination is uniquely designed to solve everyday problems in unusual ways.’
     • ‘He is a devoted collector of usual and unusual objects with one thing in common, a history.’
     • ‘The unusual combination of sweet and savoury proved to be very polarising in this country.’
     • ‘The Keighley centre is unusual because the building has twice been used by Buddhists.’
     • ‘Among his more unusual jobs had been providing a quote for a trap to capture the Loch Ness Monster!’
     • ‘Universally acknowledged as highly intelligent and articulate, she is unusual in many respects.’
     • ‘The tomato is unusual in this respect, as very few other fruit accumulate lycopene.’
     • ‘Male meiosis of Drosophila melanogaster is unusual in some respects.’
     • ‘They also spotted a number of birds, badger prints and unusual buildings along the way.’
     Synonyms

     remarkable, extraordinary, exceptional, singular, particular, marked, outstanding, notable, noteworthy, distinctive, striking, significant, especial, special, signal, superior, unique, unparalleled, unprecedented, prodigious

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