anomaly

[ uh-nom-uh-lee ]

/ əˈnɒm ə li /

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See synonyms for: anomaly / anomalies on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural a·nom·a·lies.

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

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.

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

an incongruity or inconsistency.

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.

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

Grammar. irregularity.

OTHER WORDS FOR anomaly

1, 2 abnormality, aberration, exception.

See synonyms for anomaly on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of anomaly

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

Words nearby anomaly

anomalistic month, anomalistic year, anomalous, anomalous dispersion, anomalous monism, anomaly, anomia, anomie, anomite, anon, anonychia

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use anomaly in a sentence

The reason for these conditions may be a rare climate anomaly that persisted for six years, new research indicates.
A climate anomaly may have worsened the 1918 pandemic and WWI|Kate Baggaley|September 25, 2020|Popular-Science
You can’t have these anomalies persist very long before someone figures it out.
The Economics of Sports Gambling (Ep. 388 Rebroadcast)|Stephen J. Dubner|August 20, 2020|Freakonomics
Due to changes in immigration laws in the 1960s, it’s not much of an anomaly today.
This immigration law heralded Kamala Harris’s VP nomination|Dan Kopf|August 19, 2020|Quartz
The anomaly was so marked that the region’s heat wave would represent a 1 in 100,000 year event — at least in a world without climate change, climate scientist Martin Stendel of the Danish Meteorological Institute in Copenhagen, tweeted on June 9.
A Siberian town hit 100 degrees, setting a new record for the Arctic Circle|Carolyn Gramling|June 23, 2020|Science News

South Asia appears to be an anomaly in the pandemic due to inefficient epidemiological data, according to experts.
Why South Asia’s COVID-19 Numbers Are So Low (For Now)|Puja Changoiwala|June 23, 2020|Quanta Magazine
The Real-Life ‘Downton’ Millionairesses Who Changed BritainBy Tim Teeman Lady Grantham of ‘Downton Abbey’ is far from an anomaly.
Six Must-Read Stories About Gay Mormon Husbands and Iranian Drug Wars|The Daily Beast|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Recovery from a long-term eating disorder is a bit of a statistical anomaly.
You’re Never ‘Cured’ of an Eating Disorder|Carrie Arnold|December 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And because of this anomaly, authenticators concluded it was not an original.
Why eBay Is an Art Forger’s Paradise|Lizzie Crocker|August 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“What I see in the pictures is to a large extent an anomaly to the culture of the Syrian army,” he said.
Mystery Defector Known as ‘Caesar’ Appears in Washington With Evidence of Assad’s Atrocities|Josh Rogin|July 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
One anomaly of this past holiday mayhem is that a significant number of the shootings were not gang-related.
Obama, Why Aren’t You in Chiraq?|Michael Daly|July 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But the testimony is scarcely ever found to stand that test, in cases in which the anomaly is not real.
A System of Logic: Ratiocinative and Inductive|John Stuart Mill
"Your speech is an anomaly, Mr. Mole," responded Jack, mimicking the voice of his tutor in his happiest manner.
Jack Harkaway's Boy Tinker Among The Turks|Bracebridge Hemyng
A man possessed of a new idea is an anomaly, a something that may not be impossible, but which has never appeared.
Etidorhpa or the End of Earth.|John Uri Lloyd
But the Maine law, which permits the importation of liquor into the state, whilst it prohibits its sale, is a useless anomaly.
History of Prince Edward Island|Duncan Campbell
A giant with the tastes and disposition of a schoolgirl was an anomaly in a Swiss village.
Stories in Light and Shadow|Bret Harte

British Dictionary definitions for anomaly

anomaly

/ (əˈnɒməlɪ) /

noun plural -lies

something anomalous

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

astronomy

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

geology

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
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

Derived forms of anomaly

anomalistic, adjectiveanomalistically, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

anomaly

OTHER WORDS FOR anomaly

Origin of anomaly

Words nearby anomaly

Words related to anomaly

How to use anomaly in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for anomaly

Derived forms of anomaly