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Everything about Freak

Unusual person

A freak is a person who is physically deformed or transformed due to an extraordinary medical condition or body modification. This definition was first attested with this meaning in the 1880s as a shorter form of the phrase "freak of nature", itself a broader term meaning "whimsy or caprice of nature", attributed at least as far back as 1847. The term's original neutral connotation became entirely negative during the 20th century; therefore, freak with its literal meaning of "abnormally developed individual" is viewed purely as a pejorative today. However, the term is also recently used playfully to refer to an enthusiast or obsessive person, as in a fitness freak or control freak. Wikipedia →

🧭 Start here: a 6-step reading path

  1. Read the overview: FreakA 5-minute orientation
  2. Skim a recent paper: Hydrodynamic characteristics of a 15 MW semi-submersible floating offshore wind turbine in freak wavesInfluential work since 2022
  3. Pick up a classic book: Tunnels of Blood (The Saga of Darren Shan #3)The most-reprinted book on the subject
  4. Read the landmark paper: Freak Waves in Random Oceanic Sea StatesCited 495 times
  5. Go sideways: Freak showA closely related topic
  6. Go sideways: Animal psychopathologyA closely related topic

📖 Definitions

Noun Someone or something that is markedly unusual or unpredictable.

Noun A person who is extremely abnormal in appearance, social behavior, sexual orientation, gender identity, or business practices; an oddball, a unique person, originally in a displeasing or alienating way.

Noun A hippie.

Noun A drug addict.

🗂️ The subject at a glance

  1. Usage
  2. In science

🏆 Landmark papers (most cited)

🆕 Influential since 2022

📚 Books worth reading

Ranked by number of editions on Open Library, a rough measure of how lasting a book is.

🔗 Related topics