norm

¹

[nawrm]

noun

1. a standard, model, or pattern.

2. general level or average.

   Two cars per family is the norm in most suburban communities.

3. a behavior pattern or trait considered typical of a particular social group.

   The patients regained the norms of everyday life after their hospitalization.

4. Sociology.,  a pattern or standard of behavior expected of each member of a social group.

   In many countries, cultural norms result in women bearing primary responsibility for childcare.

5. Education.

   1. a designated standard of average performance of people of a given age, background, etc.

   2. a standard based on the past average performance of a given individual.

6. Mathematics.

   1. a real-valued, nonnegative function whose domain is a vector space, with properties such that the function of a vector is zero only when the vector is zero, the function of a scalar times a vector is equal to the absolute value of the scalar times the function of the vector, and the function of the sum of two vectors is less than or equal to the sum of the functional values of each vector. The norm of a real number is its absolute value.

   2. the greatest difference between two successive points of a given partition.

Norm.

²

abbreviation

1. Norman.

norm

¹

/ nɔːm /

noun

1. an average level of achievement or performance, as of a group or person

2. a standard of achievement or behaviour that is required, desired, or designated as normal

3. sociol an established standard of behaviour shared by members of a social group to which each member is expected to conform

4. maths

   1. the length of a vector expressed as the square root of the sum of the square of its components

   2. another name for mode

5. geology the theoretical standard mineral composition of an igneous rock

Norm.

²

abbreviation

1. Norman

Norm

³

/ nɔːm /

noun

1. a stereotype of the unathletic Australian male

norm.

⁴

abbreviation

1. normal

Other Word Forms

• normless adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of norm¹

First recorded in 1820–30; from Latin norma “carpenter's square, rule, pattern”

Word History and Origins

Origin of norm¹

C19: from Latin norma carpenter's rule, square

Origin of norm²

from a cartoon figure in the government-sponsored Life, Be In It campaign

Example Sentences

Creative accounting is the norm in college football given there are no standardized practices for attendance reporting.

From Los Angeles Times

Instead, this is exactly how it happens — a blurring here, a norm destroyed there, a presidential diktat unchallenged.

From Salon

Thanks to its 1920s-era Spanish Revival buildings, arched colonnades and broad public promenades, visiting it feels like stepping back to a time when walkability and simple elegance were the norm.

From Los Angeles Times

The fear now is that this norm – like many others – could be at risk of being swept aside.

From BBC

Politicians, police officers, soldiers and senior government officials have all been targeted by the cartels, and the massacre of civilians is now the norm.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• benchmark 
• criterion 
• measure 
• model 
• pattern 
• rule