If you are curiousabout something, you are interested in it and want to know more about it.
Steve was intensely curious about the world I came from. [+ about]
Children are naturally curious.
...a group of curious villagers.
Synonyms: inquisitive, interested, questioning, searching More Synonyms of curious
curiouslyadverb [ADVERB after verb]
The woman in the shop had looked at them curiously.
'Is that how you got that scar on your face?' Bess asked curiously.
2. adjective
If you describe something as curious, you mean that it is unusual or difficult to understand.
There is a curious thing about her writings in this period.
The pageant promises to be a curious mixture of the ancient and modern.
The naval high command's response to these developments is rather curious.
curiouslyadverb [ADVERB adjective]
Harry was curiously silent through all this.
Curiously, the struggle to survive has greatly improved her health.
More Synonyms of curious
curious in British English
(ˈkjʊərɪəs)
adjective
1.
eager to learn; inquisitive
2.
overinquisitive; prying
3.
interesting because of oddness or novelty; strange; unexpected
4. rare
(of workmanship, etc) highly detailed, intricate, or subtle
5. obsolete
fastidious or hard to please
Derived forms
curiously (ˈcuriously)
adverb
curiousness (ˈcuriousness)
noun
Word origin
C14: from Latin cūriōsus taking pains over something, from cūra care
curious in American English
(ˈkjʊriəs)
adjectiveWord forms: curiouser
1.
eager to learn or know
2.
unnecessarily inquisitive; prying
3.
arousing attention or interest because unusual or strange; odd
4. Rare
highly detailed, as in workmanship; elaborate
5. Obsolete
fastidious
SYNONYMY NOTE: curious, in this comparison, implies eagerness or anxiousness to find out things and maysuggest a wholesome desire to be informed; , inquisitive implies a habitual tendency to be curious, esp. about matters that do not concernone, and an attempt to gain information by persistent questioning; , meddlesome suggests unwelcome intrusion into the affairs of others; , prying suggests an officious inquisitiveness and meddlesomeness that persists against resistance
Derived forms
curiously (ˈcuriously)
adverb
curiousness (ˈcuriousness)
noun
Word origin
ME < OFr curios < L curiosus, careful, diligent, curious; akin to cura, care: see cure
Examples of 'curious' in a sentence
curious
His was a curious mixture of fraught and weary as he warned against seeking excuses.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
There was something curious and affecting in their manner to each other.
Charlotte M. Yonge The Daisy Chain (1837)
Sadly this door has covered half of this rather macabre but curious fresco.
Jepson, Tim Umbria - the green heart of Italy (1989)
The curious thing is the absence itself.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
So you are always interested and curious.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Curious to know how laws are drafted?
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Yet at the same time we are curious to learn about this secret world.
Coyle, Andrew & Stern, Vivien The Prisons We Deserve (1994)
We want to find those naturally curious minds that enjoy thinking.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Certainly he is a curious mixture of values.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
The spot has something of a curious history.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Rather she is curious and of this time.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
The curious thing is that in some ways this is the least globalised confederation.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
He is curious and interested in improving.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
The grandmother also was curious to learn how this had happened.
Johanna Spyri Heidi (1881)
It was a topic of conversation for the naturally curious players.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
But something rather curious is going on.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
And there was a curious thing at the end.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
There do not seem many other options left and we know that fish that are not alarmed can be intensely curious.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
It is curious who he knows.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
But now something curious is happening.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
They are more curious and interested in the outside world and that's a huge change.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
It is curious to know that they died of old age twenty years ago'.
The Times Literary Supplement (2014)
I felt wary, but intensely curious.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
In other languages
curious
British English: curious /ˈkjʊərɪəs/ ADJECTIVE
If you are curious about something, you are interested in it and want to learn more about it.
She was curious about the city I came from.
American English: curious
Arabic: مُحِبٌّ لِلاسْتِطْلاع
Brazilian Portuguese: curioso
Chinese: 好奇的
Croatian: znatiželjan
Czech: zvědavý
Danish: nysgerrig
Dutch: nieuwsgierig
European Spanish: curioso interesante
Finnish: utelias
French: curieux
German: neugierig
Greek: περίεργος
Italian: curioso
Japanese: 知りたがる
Korean: 호기심이 강한
Norwegian: nysgjerrig
Polish: ciekawy
European Portuguese: curioso
Romanian: curios
Russian: любопытный
Latin American Spanish: curioso
Swedish: nyfiken
Thai: อยากรู้อยากเห็น
Turkish: meraklı
Ukrainian: цікавий
Vietnamese: tò mò
Chinese translation of 'curious'
curious
(ˈkjuərɪəs)
adj
(= inquisitive) 好奇的 (hàoqí de)
(= strange) 奇特的 (qítè de)
to be curious about sb/sth对(對)某人/某物感到好奇 (duì mǒurén/mǒuwù gǎndào hàoqí)
to be curious to know/see ... 好奇地想知道/看 ... (hàoqí de xiǎng zhīdào/kàn ... )
1 (adjective)
Definition
eager to find out private details
He was intensely curious about the world around him.
Synonyms
inquisitive
Bears are very inquisitive and must be kept constantly stimulated.
interested
He did not look interested.
questioning
searching
inquiring
This helps children develop an inquiring attitude to learning.
peering
puzzled
peeping
meddling
prying
a nasty, prying busybody
snoopy (informal)
nosy (informal)
Opposites
indifferent
,
uninterested
,
incurious
,
uninquisitive
2 (adjective)
Definition
unusual or peculiar
A lot of curious things have happened here in the past few weeks.
Synonyms
strange
There was something strange about the flickering blue light.
unusual
rare and unusual plants
bizarre
That book you lent me is really bizarre.
odd
Something odd began to happen.
novel
Clubs are always looking at novel ways to raise cash.
wonderful
This is a wonderful achievement for one so young.
rare
I think big families are extremely rare nowadays.
unique
extraordinary
What an extraordinary thing to happen!
puzzling
unexpected
exotic
his striking and exotic appearance
mysterious
He died in mysterious circumstances.
marvellous
He certainly is a marvellous actor.
peculiar
She has a very peculiar sense of humour.
queer (informal)
If you ask me, there's something queer going on.
rum (British, slang)
It was a rum sort of joke.
singular
He was without doubt a singular character.
unconventional
He was known for his unconventional behaviour.
quaint
When visiting restaurants, be prepared for some quaint customs.
unorthodox
Opposites
common
,
ordinary
,
familiar
,
everyday
Additional synonyms
in the sense of bizarre
Definition
odd or unusual, esp. in an interesting or amusing way