outlandish
adjective
Joan E. RigdonGeog. Jour.
Did you know?
For some, the grass isn’t necessarily greener on the other side of the fence—it may also be very, very strange. The side-eye that skeptical sorts cast toward visitors from parts yonder is embedded in the history of the ancient word outlandish. In Old English someone described as “outlandish” came from an outland, i.e., a foreign land. Within a few hundred years, outlandish had broadened in use to describe anything unfamiliar or strange. It’s now commonly applied to things—especially things people do, wear, or say—that are strikingly out of the ordinary, or even just too-too—that is, too far beyond reasonable or proper limits or standards. But lest you mistake us for equating outlandish with wrong or bad, heed the words of Tony Stark (as played by Robert Downey Jr. in Iron Man) when addressing speculation that he is secretly a superhero: “That would be outlandish… and fantastic.”
Examples of outlandish in a Sentence
Paul Bloom, New Yorker, 14 July 2025
Over 200 outlandish cars were created for Fury Road and kept for years in storage until filming could begin.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 12 July 2025
Some sections even debunk the more outlandish claims of government weather control.
—Pilar Melendez, NBC news, 10 July 2025
Donald Trump has been accused of many outlandish things, but killing children with flash floods has to be among the worst.
—Rich Lowry, National Review, 8 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for outlandish
Cite this Entry
“Outlandish.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/outlandish. Accessed 21 Jul. 2025.
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outlandish
adjective
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