ENGLISH
REFERENCE

built different

idiom
Meaning

Able to do things which others cannot; extremely talented or unusual.


Origin

first recorded 21st c.

The term was popularized by a July 2020 trend on the video-sharing website TikTok, in which users jokingly claimed to be able to accomplish various improbable tasks as a result of being “built different”.

Examples
SIMPLE

He finished the marathon in record time; he is just built different.

CONTEXTUAL

Most people would have given up after that injury, but she returned to the court even stronger because she is built different.

COMPLEX

While his peers struggled to grasp the complex theory, he solved the equation in seconds, proving that his analytical mind was simply built different.

Anchors to
Related idioms8entries
  1. 01

    built like a brick outhouse

    Synonym of built like a brick shithouse.

  2. 02

    built like a brick shipyard

    Synonym of built like a brick shithouse.

  3. 03

    built like a brick shithouse

    Of a man, having a muscular body, particularly with well-developed muscles of the chest, arms and abdominals.

  4. 04

    couldn't be more different

    Two entities that have virtually nothing in common.

  5. 05

    different breed of cat

    Something entirely different; a whole other thing or matter.

  6. 06

    different drummer

    Someone or something that implies individuality, originality, or nonconformity.

  7. 07

    horse of a different color

    An unrelated or only incidentally related matter with distinctly different significance.

  8. 08

    march to the beat of a different drum

    To do things in one's own way regardless of societal norms and conventional expectations.

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