Anomalies

a deviation from the common rule, type, arrangement, or form.
synonyms: abnormality, exception, peculiarity.
an person or thing; one that is abnormal or does not fit in:
with his quiet nature, he was an anomaly in his exuberant family.
synonyms: abnormality, exception, peculiarity.
an odd, peculiar, or strange condition, situation, quality, etc.
an incongruity or inconsistency.
astronomy. a quant-ty 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 quant-ty from the accepted normal value of that quant-ty.
grammar, .
contemporary examples

though the doc-mented cases of direct killing are not numerous, they must be taken very seriously and not dismissed as anomalies.
hitler’s killer women revealed in new history wendy lower october 5, 2013

he testified that he did not see any anomalies on the knife with the exception of a slight kink in the blade.
zero hour for amanda knox barbie latza nadeau september 18, 2009

but those shining moments have been anomalies, and this week’s episodes served as a microcosm of this season’s problems.
what’s wrong with idol this season? maura johnston march 24, 2010

investigators are also looking into anomalies in the life of the cyclist who was killed at the scene.
alps murder victims pasts probed by cops barbie latza nadeau september 21, 2012

the other 22 republican senators are probably lost (although there are a couple of anomalies among that 22).
most gop senators will bow to ted cruz on obamacare michael tomasky september 24, 2013

historical examples

for anomalies and uncharacteristic episodes in napoleon’s career we must go to books; the playhouse is not the place for them.
play-making william archer

how strange and how unceasing are the anomalies of irish life!
the knight of gwynne, vol. i (of ii) charles james lever

anomalies of a purely pathological character are still more common.
criminal man gina lombroso-ferrero

after the incisors, the premolars show the greatest number of anomalies.
criminal man gina lombroso-ferrero

even to-day the m-sses of the negroes see all too clearly the anomalies of their position and the moral crookedness of yours.
the martin luther king, jr. day, 1995, memorial issue various

noun (pl) -lies
something anomalous
deviation from the normal or usual order, type, etc; irregularity
(astronomy)

also called true anomaly. the angle between a planet, the sun, and the previous perihelion of the planet
also called eccentric anomaly. the 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 circ-mference of the circle
also called mean anomaly. the 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 anomaly. a 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 anomaly. a 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

n.

1570s, from latin anomalia, from greek anomalia “inequality,” noun of quality from anomalos “uneven, irregular,” from an-, privative prefix, “not” (see an- (1)) + homalos “even,” from h-m-s “same” (see same).

anomaly a·nom·a·ly (ə-nŏm’ə-lē)
n.
a deviation from the average or norm.