normal

From Latin normālis (“made according to a carpenter's square; later: according to a rule”), from nōrma (“carpenter's square”), of uncertain origin;^[1][2][3][4] 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”),^[1][5] but by Late Latin normālis had also come to mean "according to a rule", from which modern English senses of the word derive:^[5] in the 1800s, as people began to quantitatively study things like height, weight and blood pressure, the usual or most common values came to be called "normal", and by extension values regarded as healthy or desirable came to be called "normal" regardless of their usuality.^[6]

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈnɔː.məl/, [ˈnɔː.mɫ̩]
• (General American, Canada) IPA^(key): /ˈnoɹ.məl/, [ˈnoɹ.mɫ̩]

• Audio (General American):

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• (dialects of the US) IPA^(key): /ˈnɔ.məl/, [ˈnɔ.mɫ̩]
• (General Australian, New Zealand) IPA^(key): /ˈnoː.məl/, [ˈnoː.mɫ̩]
• Hyphenation: norm‧al
• Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)məl

normal (comparative more normal or (both colloquial) normaler or normaller, superlative most normal or (both colloquial) normalest or normallest)

1. According to norms or rules or to a regular pattern.

   Synonyms: customary, ordinary, standard, typical, usual; see also Thesaurus:normal

   Antonyms: unconventional, nonstandard, unusual, special

   Organize the data into third normal form.

   • 2007, Steven Wilson, "Normal", Porcupine Tree, Nil Recurring.

     Prescription drugs, they help me through the day
     And that restraining order keeps me well at bay
     And what's normal now, anyway?

   • 2014, Michael Rush, Politics & Society, Routledge, →ISBN, page 210:

     In other words, although the legal processes were observed, it was not a normal transfer of power within each of the ruling communist parties. […] Demonstrations of the sort that brought about the collapse of the communist regimes in Eastern Europe were not normal, and where attempts had previously been made to hold them, they were invariably suppressed by force.

   1. (mathematics) Adhering to or being what is considered natural or regular in a particular field or context:
      1. (number theory, of a real number) In whose representation in a given base b ≥ 2, for every positive integer n, the bⁿ possible strings of n digits follow a uniform distribution.

         A number whose individual digits in a given base representation follow a uniform distribution is said to be simply normal.

         A number that is normal for every base b ≥ 2 is said to be absolutely normal.

      2. (algebra, of a subgroup) With cosets which form a group.
      3. (algebra, of a field extension of a field K) Which is the splitting field of a family of polynomials in K.
      4. (probability theory, statistics, of a distribution, random variable, etc.) Which has a very specific bell curve shape; that is or has the qualities of a normal distribution.

         Synonyms: Gaussian, standard normal

      5. (complex analysis, of a family of continuous functions) Which is pre-compact.
      6. (set theory, of a function from the ordinals to the ordinals) Which is strictly monotonically increasing and continuous with respect to the order topology.
      7. (linear algebra, of a matrix) Which commutes with its conjugate transpose.
      8. (functional analysis, of a Hilbert space operator) Which commutes with its adjoint.
      9. (category theory, of a morphism) Which is the kernel or cokernel of some morphism, respectively.
      10. (category theory, of a category) Which contains only normal morphisms.
      11. (topology, of a topology or topological space) In which disjoint closed sets can be separated by disjoint neighborhoods.
      12. (commutative algebra, of a domain) Integrally closed: equal its own integral closure in its field of fractions.
      13. (commutative algebra, of a ring) Such that all of its localizations at prime ideals are integrally closed domains.
      14. (algebraic geometry, of a variety or scheme) Such that the local ring at every point is an integrally closed domain.
2. Usual, healthy; not sick or ill or unlike oneself.

   Synonyms: hale, healthy, well; see also Thesaurus:healthy

   Antonyms: ill, poorly (British), sick, unwell; see also Thesaurus:ill

   John is feeling normal again.

   1. (fandom slang, sarcastic, with “about”) Fervently interested in a subject; obsessed.

      Synonym: fanatical

      I wrote a 30-page analysis of the show’s villain because I’m very normal about them.

3. (education, of a school) Teaching teachers how to teach; teaching teachers the norms of education.

   My grandmother attended Mankato State Normal School; my grandfather attended Illinois State Normal University.

   • 1928, Western Montana College, Western Montana College of Education, Catalogue of the Montana State Normal College, page 10:

     PURPOSE AND SCOPE[:] The State Normal College prepares teachers for the public schools of Montana. It accomplishes its work through professional courses, directed observation of expert teaching, and  […]

4. (chemistry) Of, relating to, or being a solution containing one equivalent weight of solute per litre of solution.
5. (organic chemistry) Describing a straight chain isomer of an aliphatic hydrocarbon, or an aliphatic compound in which a substituent is in the 1- position of such a hydrocarbon.
6. (physics, of a mode in an oscillating system) In which all parts of an object vibrate at the same frequency (a normal mode).
7. (rail transport, of points) In the default position, set for the most frequently used route.

   Antonym: reverse

9. (geometry) Perpendicular to a tangent of a curve or tangent plane of a surface.

   Synonyms: at right angles to, perpendicular, orthogonal

   Antonym: tangential

   The interior normal vector of a perfect sphere always point toward the center, and the exterior normal vector directly away, and both are always collinear with the ray whose tip ends at the point of intersection, which is the intersection of all three sets of points.

• When used to describe a group of people, normal can be understood as meaning those not part of the group are strange or freakish. Its usage can therefore be understood as offensive to those it excludes.

• norm

normal (countable and uncountable, plural normals)

2. (geometry, countable) A line or vector that is perpendicular to another line, surface, or plane.
3. (medicine, countable) A person who is healthy, normal, as opposed to one who is morbid.
   • 2014, Ahmet Celik, Edibe Saricicek, Vahap Saricicek, Elif Sahin, Gokhan Ozdemir, Metin Kilinc, Ayten Oguz, Relation between the new anthropometric obesity parameters and inflammatory markers in healthy adult men‎^[1], SCIRJ:

     Subjects were grouped as Group 1 and Group 2 according to VAI, and normals, overweights and obeses according to BMI.

4. (slang, countable) A person who is normal, who fits into mainstream society, as opposed to those who live alternative lifestyles.
5. (countable, uncountable) The usual state.

   I was quite ill for a while, but latterly seem to have returned to normal.

   His workload is now back to normal.

   Heavy workload is the new normal.

   • 1930, Norman Lindsay, Redheap, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, →OCLC, page 269:

     Still, there was a hitch somewhere in the gathering that threw it out of normal.

• (normal person): see Thesaurus:mainstreamer

• Morlan, Marlon, Larmon, Molnar

normal (epicene, plural normales)

1. normal

• Hyphenation: nor‧mal

normal

1. normal

• Orucov, Əliheydər, editor (2006), “normal”, in Azərbaycan dilinin izahlı lüğəti [Explanatory Dictionary of the Azerbaijani Language]‎^[2] (in Azerbaijani), 2nd edition, volume 3, Baku: Şərq-Qərb

Borrowed from French normal.

• IPA^(key): (Central) [nurˈmal]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [norˈmal]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [noɾˈmal]

• Audio (Catalonia):

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normal m or f (masculine and feminine plural normals)

1. normal

   Antonym: anormal

• normalitat
• normalment

• “normal”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “normal”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026
• “normal” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• Alcover, Antoni Maria; Moll, Francesc de Borja (1963), “normal”, in Diccionari català-valencià-balear (in Catalan)

• IPA^(key): [nɒˈmæˀl]

From French normale, Derived from Latin nōrmālis.

normal c (singular definite normalen, plural indefinite normaler)

1. a normal value or quantity (e.g. tempature etc.)
   1. the usual and ordinary; business as usual
2. (mathematics) line or surface that is perpendicular to another line or surface

See above

normal (neuter normalt, plural and definite singular attributive normale)

1. ordinary, usual, typical

   Synonyms: typisk, almindelig

   1. scheduled, planned

      Synonyms: planmæssig, ordinær

   2. without deficiencies, working as it is should (living beings, organs etc.)

      Synonyms: rask, velfungerende

   3. average

      Synonym: gennemsnitlig

normal

1. usually, for the most part

   Synonyms: sædvanligvis, almindeligvis

• “normal” in Den Danske Ordbog

“normal” in Den Danske Ordbog

Borrowed from Latin nōrmālis. By surface analysis, norme +‎ -al.

• IPA^(key): /nɔʁ.mal/

• Audio:

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• Audio (France (Vosges)):

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• Audio (France (Lyon)):

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normal (feminine normale, masculine plural normaux, feminine plural normales)

1. normal (according to norms, usual)
2. (relational) normal (relating to a school to teach teachers how to teach)
3. okay, alright

   Antonym: anormal

• norme

• Haitian Creole: nòmal

• “normal”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012

• IPA^(key): /nɔrˈmaːl/, [nɔʁˈmaːl], [nɔɐ̯-], [nɔ-], [no-]
• Rhymes: -aːl

• Audio (Germany (Berlin)):

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normal (strong nominative masculine singular normaler, comparative normaler, superlative am normalsten)

1. ordinary, normal

   völlig normal. ― completely normal.

• → Silesian: normalny

normal

1. (standard) ordinarily, normally, in a normal fashion

   Er hat sich ganz normal benommen.

   He behaved quite normally.

2. (colloquial) alternative form of normalerweise: usually, normally, in general

   Normal geh ich früh ins Bett.

   I normally go to bed early.

normal

1. (colloquial) sure, of course, obviously; usually implies that something is trivial

   Du hast mit zwölf schon geraucht? ― Normal.

   You already smoked at twelve? ― Sure.

• “normal” in Duden online
• “normal”, in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache‎^[3] (in German)

• IPA^(key): /norˈmaːl/
• Rhymes: -aːl
• Syllabification: nor‧mal

normal

1. normal

• Boll, Piter Kehoma (2021), “normal”, in Dicionário Hunsriqueano Riograndense–Português, 3rd edition (overall work in Portuguese), Ivoti: Riograndenser Hunsrickisch

Borrowed from Dutch normaal, ultimately derived from Latin nōrmālis.

• (Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /ˈnormal/ [ˈnor.mal]
• Rhymes: -ormal
• Syllabification: nor‧mal

normal (comparative lebih normal, superlative paling normal or ternormal, equative senormal)

1. normal

• “normal”, in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia [Great Dictionary of the Indonesian Language] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016

normal (comparative plus normal, superlative le plus normal)

1. normal

   Antonym: anormal

Borrowing from English normal.

• IPA^(key): /ˈn̪ˠɔɾˠ(ə)mˠəlˠ/

normal m (genitive singular normail, nominative plural normail)

1. (geometry, statistics, chemistry) normal

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977), “normal”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla [Irish–English Dictionary], Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• “normal”, in New English-Irish Dictionary, Foras na Gaeilge, 2013–2026

normal m (feminine singular normala, masculine plural normai, feminine plural normales)

1. normal

From Latin normālis.

normal (neuter singular normalt, definite singular and plural normale)

1. normal, ordinary

   Antonym: unormal

• “normal” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

From Latin normālis.

normal (neuter singular normalt, definite singular and plural normale)

1. normal, ordinary

   Antonym: unormal

• “normal” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Learned borrowing from Latin normālis. By surface analysis, norma +‎ -al.

• (Northeast Brazil) IPA^(key): [nɔɦˈmaw]
• (Rural Central Brazil) IPA^(key): [nuɹˈmaw]

• Audio (Portugal (Porto)):

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• Rhymes: (Portugal) -al, (Brazil) -aw
• Hyphenation: nor‧mal

normal m or f (plural normais)

1. normal, standard, regular
2. (geometry) normal (perpendicular to a tangent of a curve or derivative of a surface)

• normalizar
• normalmente

• norma
• anormal

• “normal”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “normal”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Borrowed from French normal, from Latin normālis. By surface analysis, normă +‎ -al.

• IPA^(key): /norˈmal/

• Audio:

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normal m or n (feminine singular normală, masculine plural normali, feminine/neuter plural normale)

1. normal

• normalitate

normal

1. normally
2. of course, obviously

   Synonyms: evident, logic

   Normal că mi-e foame.

   Of course I'm hungry.

From Latin nōrmālis.

• IPA^(key): /noɾˈmal/ [noɾˈmal]

• Audio (Colombia):

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• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: nor‧mal

normal m or f (masculine and feminine plural normales)

1. normal, standard, regular, fine

   Synonyms: regular, común

   Antonyms: anormal, raro, poco común

   A mi me parece normal.

   It seems fine to me.

2. (geometry) perpendicular

   Synonym: perpendicular

   Antonyms: oblicuo, paralelo

normal f (plural normales)

1. (education) a school for becoming a teacher

• “normal”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025

From Latin nōrmālis, from nōrma + -ālis, equivalent to norm +‎ -al.

• Audio:

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normal (comparative normalare, superlative normalast)

1. normal

   Antonyms: abnorm, onaturlig, onormal, sjuklig

• normalisera

normal c

1. (geometry) a normal (a line which is perpendicular to another line or to a surface)

   Antonym: tangent

• “normal”, in Svenska Akademiens ordbok [Dictionary of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)

Borrowed from Spanish normal, from Latin nōrmālis.

• (Standard Tagalog)
  • IPA^(key): /noɾˈmal/ [n̪oɾˈmal]
    • Rhymes: -al
  • IPA^(key): /ˈnoɾmal/ [ˈn̪oɾ.mɐl] (English influence)
    • Rhymes: -oɾmal
• Syllabification: nor‧mal

normál or normal (Baybayin spelling ᜈᜓᜇ᜔ᜋᜎ᜔)

1. normal (according to norms or rules)

   Synonym: regular

2. normal (usual, ordinary)

   Synonyms: karaniwan, regular

3. normal (healthy; not sick or ill)

   Synonyms: matino, mabuti

4. (education) normal (pertaining to a school to teach teachers how to teach)
5. (chemistry) normal (of, relating to, or being a solution containing one equivalent weight of solute per litre of solution)

• “normal”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, 2018

From French normal, from Latin nōrmālis.

• IPA^(key): /noɾˈmɑl/

normal

1. normal
2. regular
3. usual

normal (definite accusative normali, uncountable)

1. normal (usual state)
2. standard

• normalleştirmek
• normalleşmek

normal m (plural normalau, not mutable)

1. (geometry) normal

• R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke, et al., editors (1950–present), “normal”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies