asymmetry

noun

asym·​me·​try (ˌ)ā-ˈsi-mə-trē 

plural asymmetries

: lack or absence of symmetry

As Mercury orbits the Sun, it experiences a small torque due to its slight asymmetry in the plane of its orbit …

—Johanna Miller

French rococo was a part of this mood, which tended to favor pastel colors, asymmetry, a calculated disorder, a dreamy sensuality.

—Jonathan D. Spence

"Handedness"—whether we are left- or right-handed—is a convenient indicator of the development of the brain asymmetries that are thought to be required for language.

—Tim Flannery

Examples of asymmetry in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This asymmetry is bad for both consumers and competition. —Jon Brodkin, Ars Technica, 19 July 2024

In subsequent years, assisted by subsequent spacecraft, astronomers also found that the far side features more craters and more crust, raising all sorts of questions about the origins of the moon’s asymmetries. —Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 11 July 2024

Many of the arguments about whether this creature could fly have centered on something called vane asymmetry. —Michael B. Habib, Scientific American, 16 Apr. 2024

The same asymmetry exists in the Himalayan Highlands, where wild yaks – a critically important species for Tibetan people – are estimated to number perhaps 15,000 to 20,000, compared with 14 million domestic yaks. —Discover Magazine, 5 July 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1651, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

asymmetry

noun

asym·​me·​try (ˈ)ā-ˈsim-ə-trē 

plural asymmetries

1

: lack or absence of symmetry: as

a

: lack of proportion between the parts of a thing

especially : want of bilateral symmetry

asymmetry in the development of the two sides of the brain

b

: lack of coordination of two parts acting in connection with one another

asymmetry of convergence of the eyes

2

: lack of symmetry in spatial arrangement of atoms and groups in a molecule