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

Among 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

Examples of outlier in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

While that score was an outlier, five of the 10 championship margins exceeded 20 points. —Scott Dochterman, The Athletic, 18 Jan. 2025

Aside from these outliers in the state system, approximately 450 other North Carolina defendants were found incapable of proceeding from 2017-2021, according to data by the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC). —Kallie Cox, Charlotte Observer, 17 Jan. 2025

The high-end group had until then been an outlier in a broader luxury downturn, reporting record full-year sales in May. —Karen Gilchrist, CNBC, 16 Jan. 2025

There are always outliers, conditions that could occur but are less likely. —Judson Jones, New York Times, 15 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1606, in the meaning defined at sense 3b