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Abnormal vs Anomaly - What's the difference?

abnormal | anomaly |

As nouns the difference between abnormal and anomaly

is that abnormal is a person or object that is not normal while anomaly is a deviation from a rule or from what is regarded as normal.

As an adjective abnormal

is not conforming to rule or system; deviating from the usual or normal type.

abnormal

English

Alternative forms

* anormal * (obsolete) abnormous

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • Not conforming to rule or system; deviating from the usual or normal type.
  • * 1899 , (Arthur Conan Doyle), A Duet , ch. 6:
  • And then after an abnormal meal, which was either a very late breakfast or a very early lunch, they drove on to Victoria Station.
  • Of or pertaining to that which is abnormal, in particular, behaviour that deviates from norms of social propriety or accepted standards of mental health.
  • * 1904 , (Jack London), The Sea Wolf , ch. 23:
  • Furuseth was right; I was abnormal , an "emotionless monster," a strange bookish creature, capable of pleasuring in sensations only of the mind.

    Synonyms

    * aberrant, anomalous, atypical, exceptional, extraordinary, irregular, odd, strange, unusual.

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A person or object that is not normal.
  • References

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    anomaly

    Noun

    (anomalies)
  • A deviation from a rule or from what is regarded as normal.
  • * 1956 — , The City and the Stars , p 43
  • This ardent exploration, absorbing all his energy and interest, made him forget for the moment the mystery of his heritage and the anomaly that cut him off from all his fellows.
  • Something or someone that is strange or unusual.
  • He is an anomaly among his friends.
  • (science) Any event or measurement that is out of the ordinary regardless of whether it is exceptional or not.
  • (astronomy) Any of various angular distances.
  • (biology) A defect or malformation.
  • (quantum physics) A failure of a classical symmetry due to quantum corrections.
  • (dated) An irregularity or disproportion.
  • Synonyms

    * (deviation from the norm) abnormality, deviance, deviation, exception, inconsistency, irregularity, phenomenon

    Derived terms

    () * anomaloscope * anomalous * eccentric anomaly * flyby anomaly * mean anomaly * true anomaly