variants
or less commonly anomy
: social instability resulting from a breakdown of standards and values
The reforms of a ruined economy, under these conditions, brought about social anomie, desperation and poverty rather than relief and prosperity.—
T. Mastnak
T. Mastnak
also
: personal unrest, alienation, and uncertainty that comes from a lack of purpose or ideals
In the face of these prevailing values, many workers experience a kind of anomie. Their jobs become empty, meaningless, and intrinsically unsatisfying. —Robert Straus
Robert Straus Examples of anomie in a Sentence
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This has always been a project about observing and subverting traditions — folding rap and dance music into rock and roll, bringing pop sensibilities to metal, blending anime and anomie.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 7 Sep. 2024
Jocelyn, slipping into a state of agitated anomie, has trouble running the fights satisfactorily, giving rise to a gangland conflict of deadly menace.
Dah, witnessing Jocelyn’s gradual emotional and moral disintegration, resorts to increasingly desperate measures to hold up their end of the deal.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 23 July 2024
Durkheim argued that anomie was a major driver of suicide rates in European countries.
—Jonathan Haidt, The Atlantic, 13 Mar. 2024
But China’s anomie is also a crisis of national identity.
—Rana Mitter, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024
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Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 7 Sep. 2024
Jocelyn, slipping into a state of agitated anomie, has trouble running the fights satisfactorily, giving rise to a gangland conflict of deadly menace.
Dah, witnessing Jocelyn’s gradual emotional and moral disintegration, resorts to increasingly desperate measures to hold up their end of the deal.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 23 July 2024
Durkheim argued that anomie was a major driver of suicide rates in European countries.
—Jonathan Haidt, The Atlantic, 13 Mar. 2024
But China’s anomie is also a crisis of national identity.
—Rana Mitter, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for anomie
Dictionary Entries Near anomie
Cite this Entry
“Anomie.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/anomie. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
anomie
noun
an·o·mie
variants
also anomy
: social instability resulting from a breakdown of standards and values
also
: personal unrest, alienation, and anxiety that comes from a lack of purpose or ideals
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