anomaly

The definition of an anomaly is a person or thing that has an abnormality or strays from common rules or methods.

(noun)

A person born with two heads is an example of an anomaly.

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See anomaly in Webster's New World College Dictionary

noun pl. anomalies

  1. departure from the regular arrangement, general rule, or usual method; abnormality
  2. anything anomalous
  3. Astron. a measurement used for any orbiting body, as a planet's angular distance around its orbit from its perihelion, taken as if viewed from the sun

Origin: L anomalia < Gr anōmalia, inequality: see anomalous

See anomaly in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun pl. a·nom·a·lies
  1. Deviation or departure from the normal or common order, form, or rule.
  2. One that is peculiar, irregular, abnormal, or difficult to classify: “Both men are anomalies: they have . . . likable personalities but each has made his reputation as a heavy” (David Pauly).
  3. Astronomy The angular deviation, as observed from the sun, of a planet from its perihelion.

Related Forms:

  • a·nomˌa·lisˈtic adjective
  • a·nomˌa·lisˈti·cal·ly adverb

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