- 1[usually before noun] not unusual or different in any way an ordinary sort of day in the ordinary course of events ordinary people like you and me This was no ordinary meeting.
- 2(disapproving) having no unusual or interesting features The meal was very ordinary. compare extraordinary Idioms unusual or different I'm looking for something a little more out of the ordinary. His behavior was nothing out of the ordinary (= not unusual).
noun [uncountable]See ordinary in the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary
- [usually before noun] not unusual or different in any way
- an ordinary sort of day
- in the ordinary course of events
- ordinary people like you and me
- This was no ordinary meeting.
- She was a perfectly ordinary little girl.
- They are just ordinary working folk.
Extra Examples
- I lead a very ordinary life.
- It was, for most ordinary citizens, a time of prosperity.
- She doubted that, in ordinary circumstances, the two would have got on well together.
- The images can be printed on ordinary paper.
- These plates are for ordinary, everyday use.
- We were an ordinary family.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
- be
- look
- seem
- …
- very
- perfectly
- quite
- …
- (disapproving) having no unusual or interesting features
- The meal was very ordinary.
Extra Examples
- The wines produced were at best very ordinary.
- He had an ordinary sort of face.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
- be
- look
- seem
- …
- very
- perfectly
- quite
- …
Word Originlate Middle English: the noun partly via Old French; the adjective from Latin ordinarius ‘orderly’ (reinforced by French ordinaire), from ordo, ordin- ‘order’.
Idioms
- (British English)
used to say what normally happens in a particular situation
- In the ordinary way, she's not a nervous person.
- unusual or different
- I'm looking for something a little more out of the ordinary.
- His behaviour was nothing out of the ordinary (= not unusual).
See ordinary in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee ordinary in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
1
normal or average, and not unusual or special
He lives in an ordinary house in suburban Melbourne.
It was just an ordinary Saturday morning.
perfectly ordinary:
From the outside it looked like a perfectly ordinary shed.
no ordinary... (=a special or unusual example of something):
But this was no ordinary cat – this cat could open doors.
Synonyms and related words
Ordinary and normal
BAU
identikit
normal
...
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1a
ordinary people are not famous, rich, or powerful
Did the president meet any ordinary Mexicans?
the needs of ordinary citizens
Synonyms and related words
General words used to describe rank and status
above
above my paygrade
A-list
...
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Synonyms and related words
Relating to the ordinary people
ordinary
popular
populist
...
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