anomaly

noun

ə-ˈnä-mə-lē How to pronounce anomaly (audio)
Definition of anomalynext
1
as in exception
something that is different from what is ordinary or expected her C grade is an anomaly, as she's never made anything except A's and B's before

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in abnormality
a person, thing, or event that is far from normal snow in July is an anomaly in most of the northern hemisphere

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of anomaly The model, trained on this patchwork, starts flagging thousands of legitimate customers as billing anomalies while missing real discrepancies buried in the messy records. — Olufunsho Peters, Forbes.com, 2 Oct. 2026 Statistical anomalies One month does not a trend make, and there is some reason to doubt the data. — David Goldman, CNN Money, 2 Oct. 2026 Some of the main applications are anomaly detection or robotics. — Emily Forlini, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2026 Over a span of nearly 20 years and thousands of different writers, the writing has not been contained to a single, cohesive canon, but everything is at least centered around this organization investigating supernatural anomalies from everyday items. — Brian Welk, IndieWire, 30 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for anomaly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for anomaly
  1. exception
  2. abnormality
  3. rarity
  4. mutation
  5. monster
  6. freak
Noun
  • The meeting has fallen to roughly 15 minutes and is now largely about exceptions, problems and decisions.
    — Keith Ferrazzi, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Anthropic allows exceptions for certain government contracts when contractual restrictions and safeguards adequately mitigate potential harm.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of exception
Noun
  • But appropriate counseling depends on the precise diagnosis, gestational age, associated abnormalities, prognosis and maternal circumstances.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 3 Oct. 2026
  • Some clinics may also offer full-body MRIs, which scan for any abnormalities from cancerous tumors to evidence of stroke.
    — Renée Onque, CNBC, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of abnormality
Noun
  • Just let that sink in for a little bit, because in today's day and age, the Bruins being anywhere close to the top-25 in football is a rarity.
    — Austin Perry OutKick, FOXNews.com, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Meir presented a how-to video for curly-haired spacewomen like herself, while Hathaway kept his bushy mustache — a space rarity — groomed to perfection.
    — Marcia Dunn, Chicago Tribune, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of rarity
Noun
  • These mutations aren’t necessarily inherited; instead they can be caused by certain exposures, or simply by chance.
    — Kaitlin Sullivan, NBC news, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Immunology, virology, growing a pathogen, and stabilizing a dangerous mutation all require different skills.
    — Ashish K. Jha, STAT, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of mutation
Noun
  • The main three projects — The Mummy, The Loudest Voice and Unabomber — each involve monsters in various forms.
    — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 3 Oct. 2026
  • The world has seen many hurricanes rapidly intensify in recent years, strengthening from relatively weak storms into destructive monsters in a matter of hours.
    — Chanh Kieu, Washington Post, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of monster
Noun
  • Durant’s two injuries in the playoffs — a right knee contusion suffered in practice and a left ankle sprain suffered in a Game 2 loss to the Lakers — were both considered freak accidents.
    — William Guillory, New York Times, 30 Sep. 2026
  • Ghosts have gone more mainstream than vampires, no longer grouped with the other weird freaks— the zombies and the werewolves, that paranormal genre once ascribed only to lovers of the macabre.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of freak

Browse Nearby Words

anomalousness
anomaly
anon
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Anomaly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/anomaly. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on anomaly

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about anomaly

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 9

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
a cup of tea and a golf ball on tee side by side
Quiz: Sounds Like... Choose the word that sounds like it fits the clue...
See All