Anomalies
/əˈnɒməliz/
nounIntermediate📊CommonDeviation
1 meaning2 questions
Definitions
1
Something that is unusual or unexpected.
/əˈnɒməliz/
nounneutralIntermediate
Deviation
Something that deviates from what is standard, normal, or expected.
The detective noticed several anomalies in the suspect's alibi.
💡 Simply: Something different or strange.
More Examples
2
The doctor attributed the patient's symptoms to a rare medical anomaly.
How It's Used
Science
"Scientists detected several anomalies in the data."
Statistics
"The high number of outliers represents a significant anomaly in the dataset."
From Late Latin *anomalīa, from Greek ἀνωμαλία (anōmalía), from ἀνώμαλος (anōmalos) "irregular, uneven".
The word has been used in scientific contexts since at least the 17th century, referring to deviations from expected astronomical patterns.
Memory tip
Think of 'anomaly' as 'a non-normality'.
Word Origin
Original meaning
"irregular, uneven"
Base: anomaly
detect anomaliesstatistical anomaliessignificant anomaliesunexplained anomalies
Common misspellings
anomoliesanomalysanomalies
Practice
Usage
20%Spoken
80%Written