curious
/'kjuəriəs/
Học thuậtThân thiện
A curious child gently lifts a flower petal to look at a tiny ladybug underneath.
Definition
- Adjective:
- Eager to know or learn something: Having or showing a strong desire to investigate, explore, or gain knowledge.
- Strange, unusual, or unexpected: Different from what is usual or ordinary, often in a way that is surprising or difficult to understand.
Examples of Usage
- As "eager to know":
- The curious child asked endless questions about the stars.
- I am curious to see how the experiment turns out.
- As "strange or unusual":
- There was a curious silence in the usually noisy house.
- He has a curious habit of talking to his plants.
Advanced Usage
- "Curiously enough": Used to introduce a fact that is surprising or unexpected.
- Curiously enough, the two rivals became close friends.
- To be "curious about" something: To have an interest in finding out more about a specific thing.
- She was always curious about other cultures.
Variants and Related Words
- Curiously (adverb): In a curious manner.
- She looked at the device curiously.
- Curiosity (noun): A strong desire to know or learn something; a strange or unusual object.
- His curiosity led him to study biology. (desire to know)
- The museum was full of curiosities. (unusual objects)
Synonyms
- Inquisitive: Eager for knowledge, often asking many questions.
- Peculiar: Strange or odd, unusual.
- Odd: Strange or unusual in a way that is unexpected.
Related Phrases
- Curiouser and curiouser: A phrase (famously from ) used to express that something is becoming increasingly strange or puzzling.
- As the mystery deepened, the situation grew curiouser and curiouser.
Idioms
- Curiosity killed the cat: A saying used to warn that being too inquisitive can lead to trouble or danger.
- I wouldn't ask too many questions about his past—remember, curiosity killed the cat.
A curious child gently lifts a flower petal to look at a tiny ladybug underneath.
Adjective
- having curiosity aroused; eagerly interested in learning more
- a trap door that made me curious
- eager to investigate and learn or learn more (sometimes about others' concerns)
- a curious child is a teacher's delight
- a trap door that made me curious
- curious investigators
- traffic was slowed by curious rubberneckers
- curious about the neighbor's doings
- beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
- a curious hybrid accent
- her speech has a funny twang
- they have some funny ideas about war
- had an odd name
- the peculiar aromatic odor of cloves
- something definitely queer about this town
- what a rum fellow
- singular behavior