a deviation from the common rule, type, arrangement, or form.
an anomalous person or thing; one that is abnormal or does not fit in: With his quiet nature, he was an anomaly in his exuberant family.
an odd, peculiar, or strange condition, situation, quality, etc.
an incongruity or inconsistency.
Astronomy. a quantity measured in degrees, defining the position of an orbiting body with respect to the point at which it is nearest to or farthest from its primary.
Meteorology. the amount of deviation of a meteorological quantity from the accepted normal value of that quantity.
Grammar. irregularity.
Origin of anomaly
First recorded in 1565–75; from Latin anōmalia, from Greek anōmalía, equivalent to anṓmal(os) “irregular” + -ia noun suffix; see anomalous, -ia
The reason for these conditions may be a rare climate anomaly that persisted for six years, new research indicates.
A climate anomaly may have worsened the 1918 pandemic and WWI|Kate Baggaley|September 25, 2020|Popular Science
You can’t have these anomalies persist very long before someone figures it out.
The Economics of Sports Gambling (Ep. 388 Rebroadcast)|Stephen J. Dubner|August 20, 2020|Freakonomics
Due to changes in immigration laws in the 1960s, it’s not much of an anomaly today.
This immigration law heralded Kamala Harris’s VP nomination|Dan Kopf|August 19, 2020|Quartz
The anomaly was so marked that the region’s heat wave would represent a 1 in 100,000 year event — at least in a world without climate change, climate scientist Martin Stendel of the Danish Meteorological Institute in Copenhagen, tweeted on June 9.
A Siberian town hit 100 degrees, setting a new record for the Arctic Circle|Carolyn Gramling|June 23, 2020|Science News
South Asia appears to be an anomaly in the pandemic due to inefficient epidemiological data, according to experts.
Why South Asia’s COVID-19 Numbers Are So Low (For Now)|Puja Changoiwala|June 23, 2020|Quanta Magazine
The Real-Life ‘Downton’ Millionairesses Who Changed BritainBy Tim Teeman Lady Grantham of ‘Downton Abbey’ is far from an anomaly.
Six Must-Read Stories About Gay Mormon Husbands and Iranian Drug Wars|The Daily Beast|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
And because of this anomaly, authenticators concluded it was not an original.
Why eBay Is an Art Forger’s Paradise|Lizzie Crocker|August 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“What I see in the pictures is to a large extent an anomaly to the culture of the Syrian army,” he said.
Mystery Defector Known as ‘Caesar’ Appears in Washington With Evidence of Assad’s Atrocities|Josh Rogin|July 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
One anomaly of this past holiday mayhem is that a significant number of the shootings were not gang-related.
Obama, Why Aren’t You in Chiraq?|Michael Daly|July 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I think the rule, rather than the anomaly, is that people tend to struggle.
He said it was an anomaly in the laws that the dockyard laborers were not disfranchised.
The British State Telegraphs|Hugo Richard Meyer
The explanation of this anomaly may be found in what had been occurring in Chalda.
Expositor's Bible: Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther|Walter Adeney
The waterman vouches for him; he's quite an anomaly—a respectable cabman; drives his own horse, and has never been in any trouble.
Armadale|Wilkie Collins
Though I could be no critic of marine construction, this seemed an anomaly for which there appeared to be no excuse.
The Log of a Sea-Waif|Frank T. Bullen
If his father dies he must, of course, leave: a midshipman with eight thousand pounds a year would indeed be an anomaly.
Mr. Midshipman Easy|Captain Frederick Marryat
British Dictionary definitions for anomaly
anomaly
/ (əˈnɒməlɪ) /
nounplural-lies
something anomalous
deviation from the normal or usual order, type, etc; irregularity
astronomy
Also called: true anomalythe angle between a planet, the sun, and the previous perihelion of the planet
Also called: eccentric anomalythe angle between the periapsis of a particular point on a circle round the orbit as seen from the centre of the orbit. This point is obtained by producing a perpendicular to the major axis of the ellipse through the orbiting body until it reaches the circumference of the circle
Also called: mean anomalythe angle between the periapsis of an orbit and the position of an imaginary body orbiting at a constant angular speed and in the same period as the real orbiting body
geology
Also called: gravity anomalya deviation from the normal value of gravity at the earth's surface, caused by density differences at depth, for example those caused by a buried mineral body
Also called: magnetic anomalya magnetic field, for example one produced by a buried mineral body, that deviates from an expected or standard value, usually that of the earth's magnetic field