normality

American  

[nawr-mal-i-tee] / nɔrˈmæl ɪ ti /

noun

normalities plural

1. conformity to the standard, typical, or average level, rate, condition or set of conditions, characteristics, behavior, etc..

   Any assumption of a quick return to normality and business as usual is premature.

   Surprising as it may sound, simple changes to your bed and lifestyle could prove to be the difference between severe pain and normality.

2. Chemistry. the concentration of a solution relative to that of a normal solution, one that contains one equivalent weight of the solute per liter.

   Since gram equivalent weight is the measure of the reactive capacity of a molecule, the solute's role in the reaction determines the solution's normality.

3. Statistics. the fact or property of showing a frequency distribution representable by a normal curve, a symmetrical bell-shaped curve.

   To confirm the statistical validity of the model I ran a number of diagnostics, checking for observations of influences and for normality of the distribution.

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Etymology

Origin of normality

First recorded in 1830–40; normal ( def. ) + -ity ( def. )

Compare meaning

How does normality compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• normalcy vs. normality

Explanation

When something happens that shakes up your life, you probably look forward to a return to normality, meaning the usual happenings of everyday life. To correctly pronounce normality, accent the second syllable and rhyme it with gal: "nor-MAL-ity." When you look at normality, you notice the word normal, which describes something that meets common standards. The suffix -ity means "the state of being," so normality refers to a state that is normal, something that is just as expected. Normality and normalcy are synonyms, the later associated with President Warren G. Harding, who during a speech used normalcy instead of the more common normality.

Example Sentences

Blevings added: "Information I received yesterday said it we see a resolution before the end of this month we may see a return to relative normality by quarter four".

From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026

“We don’t need a full return to normality in order to fade the moves of the last six weeks,” analysts led by Max Kettner, chief multiasset strategist, wrote in a note on Monday.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 13, 2026

A handful of people clung to an idea of normality, saying they were crossing into Turkey for vacations planned before the war.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 22, 2026

After it was signed in South Africa's capital, Pretoria, the guns were silenced, basic services were restored and normality began to return to Tigray.

From BBC • Feb. 25, 2026

Still, in the silence of the night, when the city lost its stage-set normality and operetta peace, she was besieged by the agonizing thoughts she had repressed during the day.

From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende

Related Words

• ordinariness
• uniformity