out of character

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“Anytime now. We’re not exactly sure when she was bred. As elephants go, Pet’s pretty steady, but the past few days she’s been acting up. She can’t seem to get comfortable when she lies down, she’s off her feed, and yesterday she took a poke at me with her trunk for no good reason, which is really out of character for her. Normally she’s the most easygoing elephant I’ve ever been around.”

From Literature

"It was so totally out of character. She would have phoned."

From BBC

“We’d want to know what was happening on Friday or Saturday. Was he beginning to decompensate? Was he acting out of character? Was he doing and saying things that surprised people or frightened people? Was he saying things that made no sense?”

From Los Angeles Times

The comments were out of character for Maples, who rarely spoke ill of anyone to staff, the former employees said.

From The Wall Street Journal

A defence lawyer said the offences were "wholly out of character" with Wilson's family and working record.

From BBC