deviation

[dee-vee-ey-shuhn]

noun

1. the act of deviating.

2. departure from a standard or norm.

3. Statistics.,  the difference between one of a set of values and some fixed value, usually the mean of the set.

4. Navigation.,  the error of a magnetic compass, as that of a ship, on a given heading as a result of local magnetism.

5. Optics.

   1. Also called deflection. the bending of rays of light away from a straight line.

   2. angle of deviation.

6. departure or divergence from an established dogma or ideology, especially a Communist one.

deviation

/ ˌdiːvɪˈeɪʃən /

noun

1. an act or result of deviating

2. statistics the difference between an observed value in a series of such values and their arithmetic mean

3. the error of a compass due to local magnetic disturbances

deviation

1. The difference between one number in a set and the mean of the set.

Other Word Forms

• deviatory adjective
• deviative adjective
• nondeviation noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of deviation¹

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Middle French, from Medieval Latin dēviātiōn-, stem of dēviātiō; equivalent to deviate + -ion

Related Words

• aberration 
• alteration 
• anomaly 
• breach 
• detour 
• discrepancy 
• disparity 
• divergence 
• diversion 
• fluctuation 
• inconsistency 
• irregularity 
• modification 
• variance 
• variation