anomaly

From Latin anomalia, from Ancient Greek ἀνωμαλία (anōmalía, “irregularity, anomaly”), from ἀνώμαλος (anṓmalos, “irregular, uneven”), negating the meaning of ὁμαλός (homalós, “even”), from ὁμός (homós, “same”).

• (UK) IPA^(key): /əˈnɒm.ə.lɪ/
• (US) IPA^(key): /əˈnɑ.mə.li/

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• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /əˈnɔm.ə.lɪ/

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• Hyphenation: anom‧aly

anomaly (plural anomalies)

1. A deviation from a rule or from what is regarded as normal; an outlier.

   Synonyms: abnormality, deviance, deviation, exception, inconsistency, irregularity, phenomenon

   • 1956, Arthur C. Clarke, The City and the Stars, page 43:

     This ardent exploration, absorbing all his energy and interest, made him forget for the moment the mystery of his heritage and the anomaly that cut him off from all his fellows.

2. Something or someone that is strange or unusual.

   He is an anomaly among his friends in that he's the only one who's unmarried.

3. (sciences) Any event or measurement that is out of the ordinary regardless of whether it is exceptional or not.

   She disregarded some of the anomalies in the experiment, putting them down to miscalculation.

4. (astronomy) Any of various angular distances.
5. (biology) A defect or malformation.
6. (quantum mechanics) A failure of a classical symmetry due to quantum corrections.
7. (dated) An irregularity or disproportion.

• (deviation from the norm):

• “anomaly”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “anomaly”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “anomaly”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.