odds and ends
Definition
Noun: - A miscellaneous collection of small, varied, and often unimportant items; a group of things that are different from each other and do not seem to belong together in a significant way.
Usage
The phrase "odds and ends" is used to refer to a collection of small, leftover, or miscellaneous items that are not part of a main set or category. It often implies these items are of little individual value or importance, but together form an assorted group. It is commonly used in everyday, informal contexts.
Examples
Advanced Usage
- "a box/bag/jumble of odds and ends": A common way to describe where these miscellaneous items are kept.
- He keeps a jar on his desk for all the odds and ends like paperclips and thumbtacks.
Variants and Related Words
- Bits and bobs (noun, chiefly British): A very close synonym, also meaning a collection of small miscellaneous items.
- Sundries (noun): Items of various kinds, especially small items not important enough to be mentioned individually.
- Miscellany (noun): A mixture or collection of different things.
Synonyms
- Assortment: A collection of various kinds of things.
- Jumble: An untidy collection of things.
- Hodgepodge: A confused mixture; a hotchpotch.
Related Phrases
- Odds and sods (noun, informal): Another phrase with essentially the same meaning as "odds and ends," commonly used in British English.
- The charity shop sells books, clothes, and all sorts of odds and sods.
Noun
-
a motley assortment of things
