Etymograph

English

anomaly

Anomaly comes from Latin anōmalia ‘irregularity, anomaly’, from Ancient Greek ὁμᾰλός ‘even, level’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sem- ‘one, whole’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sem-1‘one, whole’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sem-h₂-lo-s1reconstructed
  3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEὁμᾰλός1homălós‘even, level’
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἀνώμαλος1anṓmalos‘irregular, uneven’
  5. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἀνωμαλία1anōmalía‘irregularity, anomaly’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEanōmalia1‘irregularity, anomaly’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1956anomaly1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English anomaly
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1956, Arthur C. Clarke, The City and the Stars: “This ardent exploration, absorbing all his energy and interest,…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sem-Wiktionary, English anomaly‘one, whole’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sem-h₂-lo-sWiktionary, English anomalyreconstructed
  3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEὁμᾰλόςWiktionary, English anomalyhomălós‘even, level’
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἀνώμαλοςWiktionary, English anomalyanṓmalos‘irregular, uneven’
  5. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἀνωμαλίαWiktionary, English anomalyanōmalía‘irregularity, anomaly’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEanōmaliaWiktionary, English anomaly‘irregularity, anomaly’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1956anomalyWiktionary, English anomaly. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1956, Arthur C. Clarke, The City and the Stars: “This ardent exploration, absorbing all his energy and interest,…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *sem- ‘one, whole’

some, same, single, similar, seem, simple, simply, soft, sam, simulation, singular, resemble, sincerely, assemble, resemblance, simulate, simultaneous, sincerity, assimilate, semblance, synapse, homeopathic, insincere, hyphen, homology, simile, simulacrum, sempre, synchronise, homolog, 47 more

Today it means

noun A deviation from a rule or from what is regarded as normal; an outlier.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “anomaly”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *sem- / anomaly

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