Question

In technical descriptions, an anomaly is an object or condition that does not fit a rule or a pattern. What is the likely etymology of the adjective anomalous?

A) Greek a- “not” + Latin nomen “name” + Latin alui “fed”
B) Greek an- “not” + nomas “wandering, roaming” + leios “smooth”
C) Greek an- “not” + homalos “even” + -ous (adjective- forming suffix)
D) Greek ana- “backwards” + Latin malus “evil” + -ous (adjective-forming suffix)

Answer 1

By definition, etymology is a term that is used to describe the origin of the words and how their meanings were significantly replaced throughout the history of language. The word anomalous can be traced back to Ancient Greek wherein "an" means "not" and "homalos" means "even."