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Are there any singular words that mean that something feels off? Not about a person, but about something in general. E.g.

The abandoned building made me feel _____.

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    A Brit might say 'something is off' if they opened the fridge and detected a bad smell. They might investigate and say 'it's the milk'. Jun 3, 2022 at 15:36
  • If they were stage-struck they might say 'Something is rotten in the state of Denmark'. Jun 4, 2022 at 12:45
  • You say about something and give a sentence about someone by saying "makes me feel". So as written, it is not clear at all. "made me feel" is about a person.
    – Lambie
    Jun 5, 2022 at 15:31
  • Could you clarify whether you really mean "singular" - which seems to have no place here - or rather, "single"? Jun 5, 2022 at 18:53
  • You need either "… made me feel something was… " or "… makes me feel something is…" For you, which rule seems to work here? Beyond that, can you Post the whole sentence in your own or any other language… or even, in English? As it stands, "What are some words that mean "Something is off"? seems like a request for people here to read their dictionaries for you… Jun 5, 2022 at 19:00

6 Answers 6

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One might say "uneasy":

causing or feeling anxiety; troubled or uncomfortable
Lexico

So this word fits your sentence, your intuition/gut feeling tells you that something is off about the abandoned building, which made you feel uneasy.

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  • I might say in this context "ill-at-ease" which might come across more idiomatic. But in general "uneasy" is probably a safer choice. Jun 3, 2022 at 13:47
  • @DarrenRinger: in the predicative position, as in the OP's example, that should be "ill at ease" without the hyphens. (But that's too many words...)
    – TonyK
    Jun 3, 2022 at 14:07
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Informal words for the feeling might include hinky or twitchy.

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Aside from variations of "made me feel X", there are also alternatives like

There is some variation of how extreme the "feeling off" is, and some can also be used in other situations (like normal excitement).

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    Those are all linked to fear though. You can feel like something is off where it has nothing to do with fear
    – Ivo
    Jun 3, 2022 at 13:07
  • @IvoBeckers You're completely right. But I couldn't think of any examples that didn't have to do fear. If you have any suggestion I'd love to hear it (or make your own answer so I can upvote it)
    – towr
    Jun 3, 2022 at 19:34
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As @DialFrost said, uneasy is probably the most natural word for this situation. Other options include on edge and nervous; if the feeling is closer to fear you can use anxious or worried; if you want to suggest how it feels physically you can use tense.

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    When I was (very much) younger I might have said 'this place gives me a queer feeling', but for a variety of reasons I wouldn't say that these days. Jun 3, 2022 at 15:34
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I like unsettled or disquieted — both suggest that the feeling is vague, but definitely the fault of the building.

Off-topic, but the word “feel” is probably unnecessary in the sentence. The abandoned building made you unsettled or uneasy or heebie-jeebieful or whatever the feeling may be.

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Eerie:

“gave me an eerie feeling”

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