| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| irregular |
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| SYLLABICATION: | ir·reg·u·lar |
| PRONUNCIATION: |   -r g y -lr |
| ADJECTIVE: | 1. Contrary to rule, accepted order, or general practice: irregular hiring practices. 2. Not conforming to legality, moral law, or social convention: an irregular marriage. 3. Not straight, uniform, or symmetrical: irregular facial features. 4. Of uneven rate, occurrence, or duration: an irregular heartbeat. 5. Deviating from a type; atypical. 6. Botany Having differing floral parts, as of a zygomorphic or asymmetrical flower. 7. Falling below the manufacturer's standard or usual specifications; imperfect. 8. Grammar Departing from the usual pattern of inflection, derivation, or word formation, as the present forms of the verb be or the plural noun children. 9. Not belonging to a permanent, organized military force: irregular troops. | | NOUN: | 1. One, such as an item of merchandise, that is irregular. 2. A soldier, such as a guerrilla, who is not a member of a regular military force. | | OTHER FORMS: | ir·regu·lar·ly —ADVERB
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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