deviation

noun

1. the act of deviating.
2. departure from a standard or norm.
3. Statistics. the difference between one of a set of values and some fixed value, usually the mean of the set.
4. Navigation. the error of a magnetic compass, as that of a ship, on a given heading as a result of local magnetism.Compare variation(def 8).
5. Optics.
   1. Also called deflection.the bending of rays of light away from a straight line.
   2. angle of deviation.
6. departure or divergence from an established dogma or ideology, especially a Communist one.

noun

1. an act or result of deviating
2. statistics the difference between an observed value in a series of such values and their arithmetic mean
3. the error of a compass due to local magnetic disturbances

n.

1640s, noun of action from deviate (v.). Statistical sense is from 1858. Related: Deviational.

n.

1. A turning away or aside from a normal course.
2. An abnormality.
3. Deviant behavior or attitudes.
4. The difference, especially the absolute difference, between one number in a set and the mean of the set.

1. The difference between one number in a set and the mean of the set.