anomaly

American  

[uh-nom-uh-lee] / əˈnɒm ə li /

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.

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anomaly British  

/ 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

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Other Word Forms

• anomalistic adjective
• anomalistically adverb

Etymology

Origin of anomaly

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

Example Sentences

Being bounced by the all-time greats is not surprising, but there are some anomalies among the statistics.

From BBC

Survivors there continue to face elevated rates of illness, congenital anomalies and trauma.

From Barron's

But they are an anomaly, as out of date as the Japanese soldier who came blasting from a Pacific cave 10 years after V-J Day.

From The Wall Street Journal

It said in 2024 the land off Bath Street in the Millbay area was surveyed to locate bedrock and identified two potential anomalies - "both of which were discovered to be harmless".

From BBC

Since the Premier League's inception almost 34 years ago, one of its great anomalies is that no English names have appeared on the managerial roll of honour as winners.

From BBC

Related Words

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