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ab·er·rant (ăbər-ənt, ă-bĕr-)
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adj.
1. Deviating from what is considered proper or normal: aberrant behavior.
2. Deviating from what is typical for a specified thing: an aberrant form of a gene.
n.
One that is aberrant.
[Latin aberrāns, aberrant-, present participle of aberrāre, to go astray; see ABERRATION.]
aber·rance, aber·ran·cy n.
aber·rant·ly adv.
Usage Note: Traditionally, aberrant is pronounced with stress on the second syllable (ă-bĕrənt). A more recent pronunciation, with stress on the first syllable (ăbər-ənt), has begun to compete with the older one. In 2009, 57 percent of the Usage Panel preferred the newer pronunciation and 43 percent the older. Nonetheless, both pronunciations should be considered acceptable.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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