cu´ri|ous|ly

cu|ri|ous «KYUR ee uhs», adjective.

1. eager to know: »

a curious student. Small children are very curious, and ask many questions. Girls have curious minds And fain would know the end of everything (Elizabeth Barrett Browning).

2. too eager to know; prying: »

Some people are always curious about their neighbors' business.

3. a) strange; odd; unusual: »

I found a curious old box in the attic.

b) (in booksellers' jargon) pornographic.

4. very odd; peculiar; eccentric: »

curious notions. He is a very curious character.

5. very careful; exact: »

the curious inquiries of science.

6. Archaic. made with skill.

7. Obsolete. accurate; expert; fastidious.

╂[< Old North French curius (with English -ous), learned borrowing from Latin ūriōsus inquisitive, full of care, ultimately < cūra care]

–cu´ri|ous|ly, adverb.

–cu´ri|ous|ness, noun.

Synonym Study 1, 2 Curious, inquisitive, prying mean eager to find out about things. Curious means eager to learn things, but sometimes suggests being too eager to know about other people's business: »

A normal child is curious about how things work. I was curious to know who was visiting our neighbors.

Inquisitive suggests constantly asking questions to find out what one wants to know, especially about personal matters: »

She is too inquisitive about my dates.

Prying adds to inquisitive the idea of peeping and of busying oneself about other people's business: »

I had prying neighbors.