nietgewone

Nietgewone is a Dutch adjective meaning not ordinary, unusual, or extraordinary. It is used to describe things, events, or people that deviate from what is typical or expected.

The term is formed from the negation niet and the adjective gewoon (ordinary). In contemporary Dutch, both bloed options are found: nietgewone and niet-gewone. Hyphenation is common in careful or formal writing, while the closed form nietgewone appears increasingly in general texts.

Compared with ongewoon, nietgewone often carries a more formal or evaluative nuance and emphasizes deviation from a standard rather than mere rarity. It is more likely to appear in journalistic, academic, or legal contexts than in casual speech. For example, a nietgewone achievement or a nietgewone circumstance signals that something stands out because it does not fit ordinary expectations.

Related terms include ongewoon (unusual), uitzonderlijk (exceptional), and buitengewoon (extraordinary). In practice, geengewone is less common in everyday language, where ongewoon is typically preferred for everyday meaning, while uitzonderlijk is used for strong emphasis on rarity or significance.