enormity means deviation from what is normal or standard; irregularity, abnormality.
enormity is pronounced /ɪˈnɔːmɪti/.
Why “enormity” is a great word
The quality or character of being monstrous or outrageous, especially in terms of extreme wickedness, cruelty, or moral transgression. It derives from the Latin ēnormitās ("irregularity; enormity"), from ēnōrmis ("irregular, unusual"), itself from e- (variant of ex-, "out of") + nōrma ("norm, standard") + -itās (noun-forming suffix), first attested in English in the late 15th century. Unlike "enormousness" (which measures only physical scale) or "atrocity" (which names a specific, horrific deed), enormity gauges the moral dimension of evil, the chilling distance a crime or a soul has strayed from all human standards. It is the abyssal shadow cast by a tyrant's reign, the silent, sickening comprehension of a calculated genocide, the cold weight of a betrayal so complete it redefines the nature of trust—a deviation so absolute from the human norm that language itself strains to contain it.
Etymology
From Late Middle English ēnorme (“monstrous or unnatural act; enormity”), from Old French énormité (“enormity”), from Latin ēnormitās (“irregularity; enormity”), from ēnōrmis (“irregular, unusual; enormous, immense”) + -itās (suffix forming nouns indicating states of being). Ēnōrmis is derived from e- (a variant of ex- (prefix meaning ‘out; away’) + nōrma (“norm, standard”) + -is (Latin suffix forming adjectives from nouns).
noun
- Deviation from what is normal or standard; irregularity, abnormality.
- Deviation from moral normality; extreme wickedness, nefariousness, or cruelty.e.g.“Not until the war ended and journalists were able to enter Cambodia did the world really become aware of the enormity of Pol Pot’s oppression.”
- A breach of law or morality; a transgression, an act of evil or wickedness.
- Great size; enormousness, hugeness, immenseness.
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.