1
as in mysterious
being beyond one's powers to know, understand, or explain
a number of uncanny parallels in the lives of the twins who had been separated at birth
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in superhuman
being so extraordinary or abnormal as to suggest powers which violate the laws of nature
an uncanny gift for knowing when someone, no matter how distant, needed help
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3
as in eerie
fearfully and mysteriously strange or fantastic
uncanny and unexpected shadows along the mountainsides
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of uncanny
The Panthers have shown an uncanny ability to bounce back.
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Mike Kaye
december 31, Charlotte Observer, 31 Dec. 2025
Even as the technology advances, the uncanny valley remains a stubborn barrier.
—Josh Rottenberg, Twin Cities, 31 Dec. 2025
Like so many humanoids, Apollo exemplifies the uncanny, hyperreal nature of modern robotics, simultaneously an image from science fiction and a real, tangible machine.
—James Vincent, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
Throughout his career, Van Sant has had an uncanny knack for working with actors who are about to explode into a bigger realm of stardom because of their collaboration with him.
—Scott Huver, Variety, 26 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for uncanny
Recent Examples of Synonyms for uncanny
Adjective
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Not to mention the titular bugs, a swarm of blood-invading creatures discovered by her new lover, the mysterious drifter Peter Evans (Namir Smallwood).—
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The Columbus, Ohio, police chief is speaking out for the first time since the mysterious murders of dentist Spencer Tepe and his wife, Monique Tepe.—
Adjective
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The near-term threat is not superhuman machines but the decline of thinking, feeling, and social humans.—
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McHale stars as Frank Shaw, an overqualified, over-opinionated Animal Control officer who has an almost superhuman ability to understand animals.—
Adjective
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Officials have released eerie surveillance footage capturing a ‘person of interest’ in the unsolved murders of an Ohio dentist and his wife, who were gunned down inside their home.—
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Following the murder of their father, siblings Tyler (Connor Jessup), Kinsey (Emilia Jones), and Bode (Jackson Robert Scott) are relocated to his eerie Victorian estate in Massachusetts.—
Adjective
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By contrast, fringe subcultures operate in a more cryptic and chaotic manner.—
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Heeding these cryptic words some three decades later, the audacious (and well-read) impresario Tony Wilson opened the Haçienda together with the circle of post-punk musicians and designers involved with his label, Factory Records.—
Adjective
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Philbin’s staff also featured Ben Johnson, whose Chicago Bears just won a wild card round of this year’s playoffs with yet another miraculous fourth-quarter comeback.—
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After Carson Beck scampered for a score with 18 seconds left, Ole Miss had one last miraculous effort as Trinidad Chambliss threw a deep ball into the end zone.—
Adjective
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The ultimate Christmastime tradition ought to be repeat viewings of BBC's A Ghost Story for Christmas TV movie series, and its pinnacle, the haunting Whistle and I'll Come to You (available on AMC+ and YouTube).—
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And, in several haunting instances, scenes aboard his helicopter.—
Adjective
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Helena, meanwhile, was supposedly a mystic receiving directions from spiritual masters hidden in the Himalayas.—
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This was the danger Madison considered — that mystic memory would falsely elevate the Constitution.—
Adjective
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Her nails complete the magical look with silver chrome on a clear, glassy set, created by nail artist Juan Alvear with Aprés Gel-X Short Natural Almond Tips.—
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And America deserves better than another Middle Eastern misadventure born of good intentions and magical thinking.—
Cite this Entry
“Uncanny.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/uncanny. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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