You searched for: “abnormal”
abnormal (adjective)
1. Not normal, average, or typical; irregular, deviant: "Richard had abnormal powers of concentration despite the distractions that were going on around him."
2. Unusual or unexpected; especially, in a way that causes alarm or anxiety: "The abnormal extremes in weather conditions are causing officials to declare mandatory evacuations which is resulting in a great deal of stress for residents in certain areas of the world."
3. Much greater than the normal or the usual: "Abnormal profits might be blamed for the financial crisis that exists these days."
4. Departing from the normal or what is usually expected; for example, in intelligence and physical development: "The parents were very distressed when they found out that their daughter was considered to be intellectually abnormal in school."

"The abnormal circumstances surrounding their young daughter's decision to travel caused a great deal of concern among her relatives."

"The neighbor's cat has an abnormal fear of birds."

5. Etymology: This word was once spelled anormal and it came from the Greek anomalos, meaning irregular. Later the b was added by analogy with the Latin word for irregular, abnormis. based on Latin ab-, "from" + norma, "norm"; and so, "away from the norm".

Abnormal can mean either below normal or above normal; so, either better or worse than normal: "Einstein had an abnormal IQ while an ignorant person also has an abnormal IQ." On the other hand, subnormal always means below or worse than normal.

This entry is located in the following units: a-, ab-, abs- (page 7) -al [-ial, -eal] (page 4) norm-, normo- + (page 1)
Units related to: “abnormal”
allotrio- , allotri- +
(Greek: different, of or belonging to another; foreign, strange; abnormal; perverse)
anomalo-, anomal- +
(Greek: irregular, uneven; abnormal)
heter-, hetero- +
(Greek: different, other, another, unlike; irregular, abnormal; used as a prefix)
mal-, male-, mali-
(Latin: bad, badly, harsh, wrong; ill; evil; abnormal, defective; used primarily as a prefix)
para-, par-
(Greek: by the side of, beside, past, beyond; contrary, wrong, irregular, abnormal)
poly- +
(Greek: many, much; too many, too much, excessive; abnormal)
fistul-, fistulo-, fistuli- +
(Latin: pipe; an abnormal passage or communication, usually between two internal organs, or leading from an internal organ to the surface of the body)
hernio-, herni- +
(Latin: protruded viscus; rupture; in the sense of "protrusion of tissue or part of an organ through an abnormal opening in the surrounding walls")
hyper-, hyp-
(Greek: above, over; excessive; more than normal; abnormal excess [in medicine]; abnormally great or powerful sensation [in physical or pathological terms]; highest [in chemical compounds])
lalo-, lallo-, lalio-, lal-, -lalia, -lalic +
(Greek: speech, babbling, chattering; abnormal or disordered forms of speech)
malaco-, malac-, malako-, -malacia +
(Greek: soft, softness; abnormal softening, soft-bodied)
mania-, -mania, -maniac, -maniacal, -manic, -manically, -maniacally +
(Greek: a specific mental disorder or obsessive preoccupation with something; madness, frenzy; obsession, or abnormal desire for or with something or someone; also, an excessive enthusiasm or fondness for something)
-osis, -sis, -sia, -sy, -se
(Greek > Latin: a suffix; actor, process, condition, or state of; result of; expresses a state or abnormal condition or process of some disease)
-penia- (s), -penias (pl), -penic, pen-, penia- +
(Greek > Modern Latin: abnormal reduction, decrease in, insufficient, deficiency. Originally, the meaning was poverty, need; sometimes it is erroneously or incorrectly rendered as -poenia)
Poem: The Cremation of Sam McGee
(an abnormal way of getting warm in the freezing conditions of a Canadian winter as expressed by Robert Service)
Quotes: Deviant Definitions, Part 3
(abnormal definitions)
Word Entries at Get Words: “abnormal”
abnormal
Deviating from the usual structure, position, condition, or behavior.

In referring to a growth, abnormal may mean that it is cancerous or premalignant; that is, likely to become cancer.

This entry is located in the following unit: Computerized Axial Tomography, CAT, or Computed Tomography, CT Terms + (page 1)
abnormal (ab NOR muhl) (adjective)
1. The cat has an abnormal (uncommon) fear of birds.
2. An abnormal (irregular) amount of snow fell in October.
Usage note:

Abnormal can mean either below or above normal, either better or worse than normal: "Einstein had an abnormal IQ."

On the other hand, subnormal always means below or worse than normal.

Origin:

This word was once spelled anormal and came from the Greek anomalos, meaning irregular.

Later the b was added by analogy with the Latin word for irregular, abnormis, based on Latin ab-, "from" + norma, "norm"; hence "away from the norm".

This entry is located in the following unit: English Words in Action, Group A + (page 2)
Fun with Words
(examples of how words can be applied in abnormal ways)