BACK TO normality

normalcy vs. normality

normalcy vs. normality: What's the difference?

Normalcy and normality both mean the quality or condition of being normal, especially in the context of the general state of things, as in It was a welcome return to normalcy/normality after such a chaotic period. Normality also has more specific, technical meanings in the contexts of statistics and chemistry.

normalcy

[ nawr-muhl-see ]
noun
  1. the quality or condition of being normal, as the general economic, political, and social conditions of a nation; normality: After months of living in a state of tension, all yearned for a return to normalcy.

normality

[ nawr-mal-i-tee ]
noun,
  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. 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. 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.