aberration definition | Dictionary.com

ab⋅er⋅ra⋅tion

[ab-uh-rey-shuh

–noun

1.	the act of departing from the right, normal, or usual course.

2.	the act of deviating from the ordinary, usual, or normal type.

3.	deviation from truth or moral rectitude.

4.	mental irregularity or disorder, esp. of a minor or temporary nature; lapse from a sound mental state.

5.	Astronomy. apparent displacement of a heavenly body, owing to the motion of the earth in its orbit.

6.	Optics. any disturbance of the rays of a pencil of light such that they can no longer be brought to a sharp focus or form a clear image.

7.	Photography. a defect in a camera lens or lens system, due to flaws in design, material, or construction, that can distort the image.

Origin:
1585–95; < L aberrātiōn- (s. of aberrātiō), equiv. to aberrāt(us), ptp. of aberrāre (see aberrant ) + -iōn- -ion

Related forms:

ab⋅er⋅ra⋅tion⋅al, adjective

Synonyms:
1. wandering; deviation, divergence. 4. abnormality, eccentricity, illusion, delusion, hallucination.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Link To aberration

ab·er·ra·tion (āb'ə-rā'shən)

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n.

A deviation from the proper or expected course. See Synonyms at deviation.
A departure from the normal or typical: events that were aberrations from the norm.
Psychology A disorder or abnormal alteration in one's mental state.
1. A defect of focus, such as blurring in an image.
2. An imperfect image caused by a physical defect in an optical element, as in a lens.
The apparent displacement of the position of a celestial body in the direction of motion of an observer on Earth, caused by the motion of Earth and the finite velocity of light.
Genetics A deviation in the normal structure or number of chromosomes in an organism.

[Latin aberrātiō, aberrātiōn-, diversion, from aberrātus, past participle of aberrāre, to go astray : ab-, away from; see ab-¹ + errāre, to stray; see ers- in Indo-European roots.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Aberration

Ab`er*ra"tion\, n. [L. aberratio: cf. F. aberration. See Aberrate.]

1. The act of wandering; deviation, especially from truth or moral rectitude, from the natural state, or from a type. "The aberration of youth." --Hall. "Aberrations from theory." --Burke.

2. A partial alienation of reason. "Occasional aberrations of intellect." --Lingard.

Whims, which at first are the aberrations of a single brain, pass with heat into epidemic form. --I. Taylor.

3. (Astron.) A small periodical change of position in the stars and other heavenly bodies, due to the combined effect of the motion of light and the motion of the observer; called annual aberration, when the observer's motion is that of the earth in its orbit, and daily or diurnal aberration, when of the earth on its axis; amounting when greatest, in the former case, to 20.4", and in the latter, to 0.3". Planetary aberration is that due to the motion of light and the motion of the planet relative to the earth.

4. (Opt.) The convergence to different foci, by a lens or mirror, of rays of light emanating from one and the same point, or the deviation of such rays from a single focus; called spherical aberration, when due to the spherical form of the lens or mirror, such form giving different foci for central and marginal rays; and chromatic aberration, when due to different refrangibilities of the colored rays of the spectrum, those of each color having a distinct focus.

5. (Physiol.) The passage of blood or other fluid into parts not appropriate for it.

6. (Law) The producing of an unintended effect by the glancing of an instrument, as when a shot intended for A glances and strikes B.

Syn: Insanity; lunacy; madness; derangement; alienation; mania; dementia; hallucination; illusion; delusion. See Insanity.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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aberration

1594, "a wandering, straying," from L. aberrationem, from aberrare "go astray," from ab- "away" + errare "to wander" (see err). Meaning "deviation from the normal type" first attested 1846.

Main Entry: ab·er·ra·tion
Pronunciation: "ab-&-'rA-sh&n
Function: noun
1 : failure of a mirror, refracting surface, orlens to produce exact point-to-point correspondence between an object and its image
2 : unsoundness or disorder of the mind
3 : an aberrant organ or individual —ab·er·ra·tion·al /-shn&l, -sh&n-&l/ adjective

aberration ab·er·ra·tion (āb'ə-rā'shən)
n.

A departure from the normal or typical.
A psychological disorder or abnormal alteration in one's mental state.
A defect of focus, such as blurring in an image.
An imperfect image caused by a physical defect in an optical element, as in a lens.
A deviation in the normal genetic structure or number of chromosomes in an organism.

aberration (āb'ə-rā'shən) Pronunciation Key

A deviation in the normal structure or number of chromosomes in an organism.
A defect in a lens or mirror that prevents light rays from being focused at a single point and results in a distorted or blurred image. ◇ Aberration that results in distortion of color is called chromatic aberration. ◇ Aberration that is caused by imperfections in the surface or shape of a spherical mirror or lens is called spherical aberration. See also astigmatism , coma.²

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