normality

[ nawr-mal-i-tee ]

noun

, plural nor·mal·i·ties

1. conformity to the standard, typical, or average level, rate, condition or set of conditions, characteristics, behavior, etc.:

   Any assumption of a quick return to normality and business as usual is premature.

   Surprising as it may sound, simple changes to your bed and lifestyle could prove to be the difference between severe pain and normality.

2. Chemistry. the concentration of a solution relative to that of a normal solution, one that contains one equivalent weight of the solute per liter:

   Since gram equivalent weight is the measure of the reactive capacity of a molecule, the solute's role in the reaction determines the solution's normality.

3. Statistics. the fact or property of showing a frequency distribution representable by a normal curve, a symmetrical bell-shaped curve:

   To confirm the statistical validity of the model I ran a number of diagnostics, checking for observations of influences and for normality of the distribution.

Word History and Origins

Origin of normality¹

First recorded in 1830–40; normal ( def ) + -ity ( def )

Example Sentences

The fellow-traveler organizations surround the totalitarian movements with a mist of normality and respectability that fools the membership about the true character of the outside world as much as it does the outside world about the true character of the movement.

From Salon

I think at least five or six of them are in a world where they have a very narrow set of social contacts with America, let alone the outside world, and their notion of reality and normality is highly constrained, sociologically.

From Slate

Jessica used to vape but says "now everyone does it, it's just not cool any more" - and it seems the normality of vaping is causing some people to switch to cigarettes.

From BBC

Fox News was quick to slap a veneer of normality on Trump’s aspirations of erecting a Nazi-like regime in his image.

From Los Angeles Times

While life is slowly getting back to something resembling normality, the past week and change have been difficult for all but the very luckiest.

From Slate

Related Words

• ordinariness
• uniformity