[3] The fifth edition of Fishes of the World classifies the family Triacanthodidae in the suborder Triacanthoidei in the order Tetraodontiformes.

The specific name, anomalus, means "odd" or "irregular",[5] Temminck and Schlegel said that this species was "not quite modelled on the type" (n'est-pas tout-à-fait modelé sur la même type)[6] when compared to other species in the genus Triacanthus.

[5] Triacanthodes anomalus has an snout which is equal to or a little less in length than the diameter of the eye.

The large gill slet extends to below the lower margin of the pectoral fin base.

[8][9] Triacanthodes anomalus are demersal fish (ground fish) that inhabit the tropical marine waters of the South and East China Seas around Taiwan, the Japanese archipelago, and South Korea.