Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun An unpredictable development or change of circumstances.
- noun An extravagant or erratic notion or action.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To gad; range.
- noun A wandering or strolling.
- noun A wandering of the thoughts; a wild freak; a whim; a whimsical purpose.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun obsolete A wandering or strolling.
- noun Hence, a wandering of the thoughts; a wild or fanciful freak; a whim; a whimsical purpose.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun An
erratic notion oraction . - noun An
impulsive orillogical desire ; acaprice .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun an unexpected and inexplicable change in something (in a situation or a person's behavior, etc.)
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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He can call them “simple” tests, but this kind of vagary is far from simple to implement into a budget.
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He can call them “simple” tests, but this kind of vagary is far from simple to implement into a budget.
Michael Ignatieff Takes That Paintbrush Into The Corner « Unambiguously Ambidextrous 2009
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Nobody seems interested in destroying, once and for all, the vicious circle in which this "vagary" of international fraud entraps us.
January 2006 2006
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For there is no such thing as a naturally occurring "vagary" that we cannot tackle effectively with the fund of techniques to which all societies and all generations have contributed.
January 2006 2006
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Given the perpetual fear/reward roller coaster of his world, Cheswick has committed his real but misguided passion to a fight which, by virtue of its vagary and volatility, can only end in his defeat.
Steven Weber: Tea Party in a Cuckoo's Nest Steven Weber 2010
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His surname changes to Peyten and then Peyton, which is the vagary of the census-taker, not John.
John 2010
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Given the perpetual fear/reward roller coaster of his world, Cheswick has committed his real but misguided passion to a fight which, by virtue of its vagary and volatility, can only end in his defeat.
Steven Weber: Tea Party in a Cuckoo's Nest Steven Weber 2010
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His surname changes to Peyten and then Peyton, which is the vagary of the census-taker, not John.
Archive 2010-06-01 2010
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Given the perpetual fear/reward roller coaster of his world, Cheswick has committed his real but misguided passion to a fight which, by virtue of its vagary and volatility, can only end in his defeat.
Steven Weber: Tea Party in a Cuckoo's Nest Steven Weber 2010
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Given the perpetual fear/reward roller coaster of his world, Cheswick has committed his real but misguided passion to a fight which, by virtue of its vagary and volatility, can only end in his defeat.
Steven Weber: Tea Party in a Cuckoo's Nest Steven Weber 2010
100001016886860 commented on the word vagary
Strange happening:Economists don't understand all the vagaries of the stock market. (newbury house dic.)
October 30, 2010
biocon commented on the word vagary
Vagary (verb) means "to wander or roam" (Oxford English Dictionary).
July 12, 2011