abnormality
C1Formal, Academic, Technical
Definition
Meaning
A feature or characteristic that deviates from what is standard, normal, or expected.
The condition or quality of being abnormal; something that is unusual, irregular, or not typical, often in a medical, statistical, or social context.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Primarily a countable noun when referring to a specific irregular feature, and uncountable when referring to the general state of being abnormal. Often implies a deviation from a defined scientific or statistical norm.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant spelling or usage differences. Both varieties use the term identically.
Connotations
Equally formal and technical in both varieties.
Frequency
Slightly higher frequency in American English medical/technical contexts due to larger corpus size, but proportionally similar.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
abnormality in [noun]abnormality of [noun]abnormality on [scan/test]abnormality with [system/process]Vocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “A blot on the landscape (for a visual/structural abnormality)”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Rare. Might refer to abnormal financial results or process deviations.
Academic
Common in medical, psychological, biological, and statistical papers.
Everyday
Less common, replaced by 'problem', 'issue', or 'something wrong'.
Technical
Very common precise term in medicine, engineering, and quality control.
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The system is designed to flag any abnormally high readings.
- The cells began to behave abnormally.
American English
- The engine was running abnormally hot.
- The data point is abnormally low.
adverb
British English
- The results were abnormally low for this time of year.
- He was behaving abnormally quietly.
American English
- The market reacted abnormally quickly.
- She was abnormally stressed about the meeting.
adjective
British English
- They observed abnormal cell growth.
- The scan showed an abnormal lump.
American English
- The patient had abnormal blood pressure.
- This is an abnormal situation for our company.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- The doctor said the test showed a minor abnormality.
- Any abnormality in the machine's sound should be reported.
- The prenatal screening can detect certain genetic abnormalities.
- A statistical abnormality in the data prompted further investigation.
- The researcher's focus was on the neurodevelopmental abnormalities associated with the syndrome.
- The audit revealed systemic abnormalities in the procurement process.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think: 'AB-NORMAL-ity' – literally 'away from the normal state'.
Conceptual Metaphor
NORM IS A PATH / DEVIATION IS GOING OFF THE PATH.
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Avoid direct calque 'ненормальность' in formal contexts; it can sound overly judgemental. 'Аномалия' or 'отклонение' are closer technical synonyms.
- The Russian 'аномалия' is a closer scientific match than 'абнормальность' (a non-existent calque).
Common Mistakes
- Using 'abnormality' to describe minor, subjective peculiarities (e.g., 'His taste in music is an abnormality'). Overuse in informal speech.
- Misspelling as 'abnormatily' or 'abnormaly'.
- Confusing with 'abnormity' (archaic).
Practice
Quiz
In which context is 'abnormality' LEAST appropriate?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
In technical contexts, it is neutral, describing a deviation from a standard. In everyday use, it often carries a negative connotation of being undesirable or problematic.
They are close synonyms. 'Abnormality' is more common in medical/biological contexts and often implies a functional impact. 'Anomaly' is broader, used in science, data analysis, and general language, and can be a one-off irregularity.
Yes, when referring to the general state or quality of being abnormal. Example: 'The degree of abnormality was concerning.'
In American English /ˌæbnɔːrˈmæləti/, the 'r' after /ɔː/ is pronounced as a rhotic sound (like a soft 'r'), which is the key difference from the non-rhotic British pronunciation /ˌæbnɔːˈmæləti/.
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