outlier
noun
out·li·er
ˈau̇t-ˌlī(-ə)r 
1
: a person whose residence and place of business are at a distance
His house was a place of refuge for outliers.
2
: something (such as a geologic feature) that is situated away from or classed differently from a main or related body
The island is an outlier on the southeast side of the archipelago.
3
a
: a statistical observation that is markedly different in value from the others of the sample
Values that are outliers give disproportionate weight to larger over smaller values.
b
: a person or thing that is atypical within a particular group, class, or category
She was an outlier when she launched her cruelty-free, sustainably minded brand in 2001, but has found the centre of gravity shifting in her direction.—
Jess Cartner-Morley
Jess Cartner-MorleyAmong the world's wealthy nations, the United States is an outlier on this issue: Americans have the lowest national minimum wage, relative to the median wage, of any of the wealthy nations represented in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.—Christopher Ingraham
Christopher IngrahamExamples of outlier in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The merry month of May used to be an outlier on the Red Rocks Amphitheatre calendar, and any artist that dared book past September tempted the wrath of show-stopping cold and snow.
—John Wenzel, The Denver Post, 7 Mar. 2025
That Ohio State game [a 73-70 loss on Feb. 5], that was a little bit of an outlier.
—Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 3 Mar. 2025
There are a few outliers who maybe can live on mice, but that's very unusual.
—Krystal Nurse, USA TODAY, 28 Feb. 2025
Igor, an outlier who's treated Ani tenderly throughout the ordeal, boldly asks that Vanya apologize to her.
—Randall Colburn, EW.com, 28 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for outlier
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John Wenzel, The Denver Post, 7 Mar. 2025
That Ohio State game [a 73-70 loss on Feb. 5], that was a little bit of an outlier.
—Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 3 Mar. 2025
There are a few outliers who maybe can live on mice, but that's very unusual.
—Krystal Nurse, USA TODAY, 28 Feb. 2025
Igor, an outlier who's treated Ani tenderly throughout the ordeal, boldly asks that Vanya apologize to her.
—Randall Colburn, EW.com, 28 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for outlier
Cite this Entry
“Outlier.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/outlier. Accessed 14 Mar. 2025.
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