Memory connection
Picture “a bare ant”
At an ordinary picnic, a bare ant suddenly surfs across a bowl of soup. The bizarre scene is a clear break from the usual routine.
The sound cue helps you reach the scene; the action in the scene carries you from the scene to the definition.
Use it accurately
Meaning in context
The scientist repeated the test to investigate the aberrant result.
Analysts treated the sudden spike as aberrant rather than evidence of a lasting trend.
Aberrant describes the unusual thing itself. The noun aberration names the departure or irregularity.
Common patterns
- aberrant behavior
- an aberrant result
- statistically aberrant
Quick check
Can you retrieve the meaning?
Which result would be aberrant?
Choose an answer, then explain it in your own words.