anomaly

[uh-nom-uh-lee]

noun

plural

anomalies 

1. a deviation from the common rule, type, arrangement, or form.

   Synonyms: exception, aberration, abnormality

2. an anomalous person or thing; one that is abnormal or does not fit in.

   With his quiet nature, he was an anomaly in his exuberant family.

   Synonyms: exception, aberration, abnormality

3. an odd, peculiar, or strange condition, situation, quality, etc.

4. an incongruity or inconsistency.

5. Astronomy.,  a quantity measured in degrees, defining the position of an orbiting body with respect to the point at which it is nearest to or farthest from its primary.

6. Meteorology.,  the amount of deviation of a meteorological quantity from the accepted normal value of that quantity.

7. Grammar.,  irregularity.

anomaly

/ əˈnɒməlɪ /

noun

1. something anomalous

2. deviation from the normal or usual order, type, etc; irregularity

3. astronomy

   1. Also called: true anomaly. the angle between a planet, the sun, and the previous perihelion of the planet

   2. Also called: eccentric anomaly. the angle between the periapsis of a particular point on a circle round the orbit as seen from the centre of the orbit. This point is obtained by producing a perpendicular to the major axis of the ellipse through the orbiting body until it reaches the circumference of the circle

   3. Also called: mean anomaly. the angle between the periapsis of an orbit and the position of an imaginary body orbiting at a constant angular speed and in the same period as the real orbiting body

4. geology

   1. Also called: gravity anomaly. a deviation from the normal value of gravity at the earth's surface, caused by density differences at depth, for example those caused by a buried mineral body

   2. Also called: magnetic anomaly. a magnetic field, for example one produced by a buried mineral body, that deviates from an expected or standard value, usually that of the earth's magnetic field

Other Word Forms

• anomalistic adjective
• anomalistically adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of anomaly¹

First recorded in 1565–75; from Latin anōmalia, from Greek anōmalía, equivalent to anṓmal(os) “irregular” + -ia noun suffix; anomalous, -ia

Example Sentences

In fact, it was used as a reason for me losing my job because even Tottenham decided to exclude the first 10 games - because they were an anomaly, apparently.

Read more on BBC

After extensive analysis, the scientists concluded that the anomaly could not have been created by later impacts or by ongoing geological processes within Earth.

Read more on Science Daily

It took 18 years before Einstein’s theory of special relativity accommodated the anomaly.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

It was exactly the type of anomaly that explains how the Brewers finished with the best record in baseball this season.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

By delving back in time in the ice there, researchers hope to find out why these glaciers have resisted the general planetary warming of recent decades -- and whether this so-called "Karakoram anomaly" could be ending.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• aberration 
• abnormality 
• deviation 
• inconsistency 
• irregularity 
• oddity 
• rarity