'anomic' originates from French, specifically the word 'anomie', where the Greek prefix 'an-' meant 'without' and Greek 'nomos' meant 'law'.

'anomic' changed from French 'anomie', which itself comes from Greek 'anomía' (from 'an-' + 'nomos'), and entered English as the noun 'anomie' before the adjective form 'anomic' developed.

Initially it meant 'without law' (literally 'lawless'), but over time it evolved to mean 'breakdown or absence of social norms' (social disorder) and later acquired a specialized clinical sense relating to difficulty naming (anomia).