normal

A2 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˈnɔɹ.məl/ UK /ˈnɔː.məl/ See IPA manual

adj noun Freq #851

Meanings

1

adj
Usual, ordinary, or expected; not strange or surprising.

It is normal to feel nervous before an exam.
2

adj
Healthy and feeling like yourself; not ill.

After a few days of rest, John felt normal again.
3

noun
The usual or expected state of things.

I was quite ill for a while, but I've now returned to normal.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · usual, ordinary, or... ordinary standard typical usual

2 adj · healthy and feeling like... healthy

More average basicbog-standardcommoncommon-and-gardencommon-or-gardencommonplace congruent consistent conventional customary everyday

Opposites

conspicuous different egregious exceptional historic interesting memorable notable noteworthy outstanding remarkable special

Word family

Forms normals

Derived forms abnormalantinormalbinormalcentinormalconormaldecanormaldecinormaldenormalearth-normalequinormalextranormalheteronormal

Related forms agreeable inevitable intermediate moderate norm normalitynormalizationnormalizenormalizednormallynormcorenormie

Etymology

Etymology tree Latin norma Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālis Latin nōrmālisder. English normal From Latin normālis (“made according to a carpenter's square; later: according to a rule”), from nōrma (“carpenter's square”), of uncertain origin; doublet of normale. The earliest meaning of the word in English was "perpendicular; forming a right angle" like something normālis (“made according to a carpenter's square”), but by Late Latin normālis had also come to mean "according to a rule", from which modern English senses of the word derive: in the 1800s, as people beg…

*ǵneh₃- Proto-Indo-European normālis Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities

# normal

**Type:** Word
**Level:** A2
**Part of speech:** adj, noun
**IPA (US):** ˈnɔɹ.məl
**IPA (UK):** ˈnɔː.məl
**Frequency rank:** 851

## Meanings
1. Usual, ordinary, or expected; not strange or surprising.
2. Healthy and feeling like yourself; not ill.
3. The usual or expected state of things.

## Examples
- It is normal to feel nervous before an exam.
- After a few days of rest, John felt normal again.
- I was quite ill for a while, but I've now returned to normal.

## Synonyms
- average
- basic
- bog-standard
- common
- common-and-garden
- common-or-garden
- commonplace
- congruent
- consistent
- conventional
- customary
- everyday

## Antonyms
- conspicuous
- different
- egregious
- exceptional
- historic
- interesting
- memorable
- notable
- noteworthy
- outstanding
- remarkable
- special

## Derived Forms
- abnormal
- antinormal
- binormal
- centinormal
- conormal
- decanormal
- decinormal
- denormal
- earth-normal
- equinormal
- extranormal
- heteronormal

## Related Forms
- agreeable
- inevitable
- intermediate
- moderate
- norm
- normality
- normalization
- normalize
- normalized
- normally
- normcore
- normie

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *ǵneh₃-
- Root: normālis

## Etymology
Etymology tree Latin norma Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālis Latin nōrmālisder. English normal From Latin normālis (“made according to a carpenter's square; later: according to a rule”), from nōrma (“carpenter's square”), of uncertain origin; doublet of normale. The earliest meaning of the word in English was "perpendicular; forming a right angle" like something normālis (“made according to a carpenter's square”), but by Late Latin normālis had also come to mean "according to a rule", from which modern English senses of the word derive: in the 1800s, as people beg…

## AI Etymology
Normal comes from Latin normālis (“made according to a carpenter's square; later: according to a rule”), from nōrma (“carpenter's square”), of uncertain origin; doublet of normale. The historical chain includes Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- and Latin normālis. Modern senses include usual, ordinary, or expected; not strange or surprising and healthy and feeling like yourself; not ill. The wider word family includes derivatives such as abnormal, antinormal, binormal, centinormal, conormal, and decanormal and related forms such as agreeable, inevitable, intermediate, and moderate.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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