ENGLISH
REFERENCE

odds and ends

idiom
Meaning

Miscellaneous things; oddments


Origin

disputed origin

From a dialectal alteration of ords and ends (“points and endings" or "beginnings and ends”). More at ord, end.

Examples
SIMPLE

I keep my odds and ends in a kitchen drawer.

CONTEXTUAL

Before moving, she spent the weekend sorting through odds and ends she had collected over the years.

COMPLEX

The attic was filled with nothing but forgotten odds and ends — faded postcards, broken clocks, and keys to doors that no longer existed.

Anchors to
Related idioms8entries
  1. 01

    all ends up

    Completely; totally.

  2. 02

    beat the odds

    To succeed despite being unlikely to do so.

  3. 03

    burn the candle at both ends

    To work hard night and day; to sleep late and wake up early; to overwork or overexert oneself.

  4. 04

    go to the ends of the earth

    To do everything possible to achieve something.

  5. 05

    long odds

    poor chances; unlikeliness, improbability

  6. 06

    loose ends

    Leftover items that have not been addressed or attended to.

  7. 07

    make ends meet

    To have enough money to cover expenses; to get by financially; to get through the pay period (sufficient to meet the next payday).

  8. 08

    odds and sods

    Miscellaneous items.

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