curious

[ kyoor-ee-uhs ]
/ ˈkyʊər i əs /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR curious ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

eager to learn or know; inquisitive.
prying; meddlesome.
arousing or exciting speculation, interest, or attention through being inexplicable or highly unusual; odd; strange: a curious sort of person; a curious scene.
Archaic.
  1. made or prepared skillfully.
  2. done with painstaking accuracy or attention to detail: a curious inquiry.
  3. careful; fastidious.
  4. marked by intricacy or subtlety.

Origin of curious

1275–1325; Middle English < Latin cūriōsus careful, inquisitive, equivalent to cūri- (combining form of cūra care) + -ōsus -ous. See cure

SYNONYMS FOR curious

1 inquiring, interested.
2 spying, peeping.
3 singular, novel, rare.
SEE SYNONYMS FOR curious ON THESAURUS.COM

synonym study for curious

2. Curious, inquisitive, meddlesome, prying refer to taking an undue (and petty) interest in others' affairs. Curious implies a desire to know what is not properly one's concern: curious about a neighbor's habits. Inquisitive implies asking impertinent questions in an effort to satisfy curiosity: inquisitive about a neighbor's habits. Meddlesome implies thrusting oneself into and taking an active part in other people's affairs entirely unasked and unwelcomed: a meddlesome cousin who tries to run the affairs of a family. Prying implies a meddlesome and persistent inquiring into others' affairs: a prying reporter inquiring into the secrets of a business firm.

OTHER WORDS FROM curious

Words nearby curious

curie-weiss law, curio, curiosa, curiosity, curiosity killed the cat, curious, curite, curitiba, curium, curl, curl one's hair

Words related to curiousness

inquisitiveness, nosiness, inquiry, interest

Example sentences from the Web for curiousness

  • Her mother had been frank with her since she had reached the age of curiousness; in turn Mona was frank with her father.

    Painted Veils |James Huneker

  • There is nothing else to recommend the poem except its wit and the curiousness of the subject.

    Books and Habits from the Lectures of Lafcadio Hearn |Lafcadio Hearn

  • Surely, that which is forbid as solemn matter of religion, should be rather forbid as mere matter of curiousness.

    Joyce Morrell's Harvest |Emily Sarah Holt

  • The curiousness of the subject will, I hope, excuse my dwelling on it for some time.

    A Treatise of Human Nature |David Hume

British Dictionary definitions for curiousness

curious
/ (ˈkjʊərɪəs) /

adjective

eager to learn; inquisitive
overinquisitive; prying
interesting because of oddness or novelty; strange; unexpected
rare (of workmanship, etc) highly detailed, intricate, or subtle
obsolete fastidious or hard to please

Derived forms of curious

curiously, adverb curiousness, noun

Word Origin for curious

C14: from Latin cūriōsus taking pains over something, from cūra care