ABNORMALITY

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does abnormality mean? 

• ABNORMALITY (noun)
  The noun ABNORMALITY has 4 senses:

1. an abnormal physical condition resulting from defective genes or developmental deficiencies

2. retardation sufficient to fall outside the normal range of intelligence

3. marked strangeness as a consequence of being abnormal

4. behavior that breaches the rule or etiquette or custom or morality

  Familiarity information: ABNORMALITY used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• ABNORMALITY (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

An abnormal physical condition resulting from defective genes or developmental deficiencies

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Synonyms:

abnormalcy; abnormality

Hypernyms ("abnormality" is a kind of...):

physical condition; physiological condition; physiological state (the condition or state of the body or bodily functions)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "abnormality"):

mental abnormality (any abnormality of mental function)

varix (abnormally enlarged or twisted blood vessel or lymphatic vessel)

nanophthalmos (condition in which both eyes are abnormally small but otherwise normal)

palmature (an abnormality in which the fingers are webbed)

dysplasia (abnormal development (of organs or cells) or an abnormal structure resulting from such growth)

hydrocephalus; hydrocephaly (an abnormal condition in which cerebrospinal fluid collects in the ventricles of the brain; in infants it can cause abnormally rapid growth of the head and bulging fontanelles and a small face; in adults the symptoms are primarily neurological)

abrachia (the condition of having no arms)

progeria (a rare abnormality marked by premature aging (grey hair and wrinkled skin and stooped posture) in a child)

atypicality; untypicality (any state that is not typical)

arrested development; fixation; infantile fixation; regression (an abnormal state in which development has stopped prematurely)

aberrance; aberrancy; aberration; deviance (a state or condition markedly different from the norm)

cyclopia (a developmental abnormality in which there is only one eye)

spinal curvature (an abnormal curvature of the vertebral column)

subnormality (the state of being less than normal (especially with respect to intelligence))

anomalousness; anomaly (deviation from the normal or common order or form or rule)

gynecomastia (excessive development of the breasts in males; usually the result of hormonal imbalance or treatment with certain drugs (including some antihypertensives))

infantilism (an abnormal condition in which an older child or adult retains infantile characteristics)

macrocephaly; megacephaly; megalocephaly (an abnormally large head; differs from hydrocephalus because there is no increased intracranial pressure and the overgrowth is symmetrical)

microbrachia (abnormally small arms)

microcephalus; microcephaly; nanocephaly (an abnormally small head and underdeveloped brain)

pachycheilia (an abnormal thickness of the lips)

phimosis (an abnormal tightness of the foreskin preventing retraction over the glans)

irritation ((pathology) abnormal sensitivity to stimulation)

retroflection; retroflexion; retroversion (a turning or tilting backward of an organ or body part)

sequela (any abnormality following or resulting from a disease or injury or treatment)

squint; strabismus (abnormal alignment of one or both eyes)

torticollis; wryneck (an unnatural condition in which the head leans to one side because the neck muscles on that side are contracted)

dextrocardia (abnormal condition where the heart is located toward the right side of the chest)

acardia (congenital absence of the heart (as in the development of some monsters))

acephalia; acephalism; acephaly (absence of the head (as in the development of some monsters))

acorea (absence of the pupil in an eye)

acromicria; acromikria (abnormally small extremities (underdeveloped fingers and toes))

acromphalus (abnormal protrusion of the navel; sometimes the start of umbilical hernia)

amastia (absence of the mammary glands (either through surgery or developmental defect))

aneuploidy (an abnormality involving a chromosome number that is not an exact multiple of the haploid number (one chromosome set is incomplete))

anorchia; anorchidism; anorchism (absence of one of both testes)

asynclitism; obliquity (the presentation during labor of the head of the fetus at an abnormal angle)

atresia (an abnormal condition in which a normal opening or tube in the body (as the urethra) is closed or absent)

brachydactylia; brachydactyly (abnormal shortness of fingers and toes)

cryptorchidism; cryptorchidy; cryptorchism (failure of one or both testes to move into the scrotum as the male fetus develops)

deviated septum (abnormal displacement of any wall that separates two chambers (usually in the nasal cavity))

lagophthalmos (abnormal condition in which an eye cannot close completely)

ectrodactyly (congenital abnormality involving the absence of some fingers or toes)

erethism (an abnormally high degree of irritability or sensitivity to stimulation of an organ or body part)

fetal distress; foetal distress (an abnormal condition of a fetus; usually discovered during pregnancy and characterized by an abnormal heart rhythm)

hepatomegaly; megalohepatia (abnormal enlargement of the liver)

inversion (abnormal condition in which an organ is turned inward or inside out (as when the upper part of the uterus is pulled into the cervical canal after childbirth))

heterotaxy; transposition (any abnormal position of the organs of the body)

pneumothorax (abnormal presence of air in the pleural cavity resulting in the collapse of the lung; may be spontaneous (due to injury to the chest) or induced (as a treatment for tuberculosis))

macrencephaly (an abnormally large braincase)

hydatid mole; hydatidiform mole; molar pregnancy (an abnormality during pregnancy; chorionic villi around the fetus degenerate and form clusters of fluid-filled sacs; usually associated with the death of the fetus)

hydramnios (an abnormality of pregnancy; accumulation of excess amniotic fluid)

hypervitaminosis (an abnormal condition resulting from taking vitamins excessively; can be serious for vitamins A or D or K)

hypospadias (an abnormal condition in males in which the urethra opens on the under surface of the penis)

Antonym:

normality (being within certain limits that define the range of normal functioning)

Derivation:

abnormal (not normal; not typical or usual or regular or conforming to a norm)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Retardation sufficient to fall outside the normal range of intelligence

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

abnormality; mental defectiveness

Hypernyms ("abnormality" is a kind of...):

backwardness; mental retardation; retardation; slowness; subnormality (lack of normal development of intellectual capacities)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "abnormality"):

feeblemindedness (severe mental deficiency)

Derivation:

abnormal (departing from the normal in e.g. intelligence and development)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Marked strangeness as a consequence of being abnormal

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

abnormality; freakishness

Hypernyms ("abnormality" is a kind of...):

strangeness; unfamiliarity (unusualness as a consequence of not being well known)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Behavior that breaches the rule or etiquette or custom or morality

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

abnormality; irregularity

Hypernyms ("abnormality" is a kind of...):

misbehavior; misbehaviour; misdeed (improper or wicked or immoral behavior)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "abnormality"):

deviance; deviation (deviate behavior)

Derivation:

abnormal (not normal; not typical or usual or regular or conforming to a norm)

 Context examples 

A very rare mitochondrial abnormality characterized by myoclonic epilepsy and the microscopic finding of ragged-red fibers in muscle tissues.

(MERRF Syndrome, NCI Thesaurus)

A congenital abnormality in which the meninges protrude through a defect in the spinal column or the cranium.

(Meningocele, NCI Thesaurus)

It is characterized by the abnormal development of the second branchial arch, resulting in the formation of branchial cleft cysts and fistulae, hearing loss and ear malformations, and renal abnormalities.

(Melnick-Fraser Syndrome, NCI Thesaurus)

A form of long QT syndrome characterized by ventricular arrhythmia, muscle weakness, and developmental abnormalities which include micrognathia, low-set ears and deformities of the fingers.

(Andersen Syndrome, NCI Thesaurus)

A congenital (due to inherited enzyme abnormality) or acquired (due to failure of a metabolic important organ) disorder resulting from an abnormal metabolic process.

(Metabolic disorder, NCI Thesaurus)

An autosomal recessive inherited disorder characterized by abnormalities in the development of the myelin sheaths.

(Metachromatic Leukodystrophy, NCI Thesaurus)

A rare congenital abnormality characterized by the presence of an abnormally small colon.

(Microcolon, NCI Thesaurus)

It is characterized by abnormalities in the metabolism of lipids and proteins.

(Methylmalonic Acidemia, NCI Thesaurus)

Methemoglobinemia may be due to a defect in the enzyme NADH methemoglobin reductase (an autosomal recessive trait) or to an abnormality in hemoglobin M (an autosomal dominant trait).

(Methemoglobinemia, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)

A rare congenital abnormality in which the infant's external genitalia do not have the typical appearance of a male's or female's genitalia.

(Ambiguous Genitalia, NCI Thesaurus)