Monday, December 04, 2006

Anomalous

A phenomenon that is anomalous deviates from a common pattern or type. For example, a dog with an extra claw is anomalous in that it differs from the expected pattern of dogs to have five claws. The word is often used in science to indicate that a particular object of study is unexpected or uncommon. Anomalous derives from the Latin (and perhaps Greek) meaning "uneven."

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