eccentric: adj. & n. --adj. 1 odd or capricious in behaviour or appearance; whimsical. 2 a not placed, not having its axis etc. placed centrally. b (often foll. by to) (of a circle) not concentric (to another). c (of an orbit) not circular. --n. 1 an eccentric person. 2 Mech. an eccentric contrivance for changing rotatory into backward-and-forward motion, e.g. the cam used in an internal-combustion engine. øøeccentrically adv. eccentricity n. (pl. -ies). [LL eccentricus f. Gk ekkentros f. ek out of + kentros CENTRE]
