I. pə̇ˈkyülyə(r), pēˈk- adjective
Etymology: Middle English peculier, from Latin peculiaris of private property, owned privately, special, extraordinary, from peculium private property, peculium (from pecu cattle) + -aris -ar; akin to Latin pecus cattle — more at fee
1.
a. : belonging exclusively or especially to a person or group
a peculiar garb of their own
a mystic belief in a peculiar soil — M.R.Cohen
b. obsolete : owned or used privately rather than publicly or in common
peculiar fields are turn'd to common roads — William Davenant
groping for trouts in a peculiar river — Shakespeare
2.
a. archaic : separate , independent
b. : of or relating to an ecclesiastical jurisdiction not subject in English canon law to the ordinary of the diocese
the Peculiar Jurisdiction of the Dean of Sarum — H.W.Jones
3. : tending to be characteristic of one only : distinctive
the peculiar character of the Government of the U.S. — R.B.Taney
the peculiar responsibility of the junior college — L.L.Medsker
— often used postpositively with to
a drowsy fervor … quite peculiar to her — Thomas Hardy
problems … peculiar to particular segments of the engineering profession — H.A.Wagner
4.
a. : different from the usual or normal : singular , special , particular
a matter of peculiar interest
this truth comes to us with peculiar shock — R.B.Heilman
a man still feels it a peculiar insult to be taunted with cowardice by a woman — Virginia Woolf
b. : strange , curious
a peculiar situation
said in a peculiar tone — Guy Fowler
feel a bit peculiar — Richard Joseph
c. : eccentric , queer
her peculiar behavior
all great writers have been … peculiar — Time
Synonyms: see characteristic , strange
II. noun
( -s )
1. : something (as an office or place) exempt from ordinary jurisdiction : independent: as
a. : a church or parish exempt from the jurisdiction of the ordinary in whose territory it lies
the Deanery … one of the three Peculiars in the Province — Manchester Guardian Weekly
— compare royal peculiar
b. : a piece of land, precinct, or district in the New England colonies not in any town and not constituting a town
2. : something peculiarly one's own: as
a. obsolete : an exclusive quality : peculiarity
b. obsolete : a private or special interest
c. : an exclusive property or privilege : prerogative
3. usually capitalized : one of a religious group called the Peculiar People