distorted
[dih-stawr-tid]
- not truly or completely representing the facts or reality; misrepresented; false: She has a distorted view of life.
- twisted; deformed; misshapen.
- mentally or morally twisted, as with an aberration or bias: He has a distorted sense of values.
Origin of distorted
distort
[dih-stawrt]
- to twist awry or out of shape; make crooked or deformed: Arthritis had distorted his fingers.
- to give a false, perverted, or disproportionate meaning to; misrepresent: to distort the facts.
- Electronics. to reproduce or amplify (a signal) inaccurately by changing the frequencies or unequally changing the delay or amplitude of the components of the output wave.
Origin of distort
1580–90; < Latin distortus (past participle of distorquēre to distort), equivalent to dis- dis-1 + tor(qu)- (stem of torquēre to twist) + -tus past participle suffix
Synonyms
See more synonyms on Thesaurus.com2. pervert, misconstrue, twist, falsify, misstate. See misrepresent.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for distorted
Contemporary Examples
It starts off like any other Lana tune, replete with minor chords and humming, distorted vocals.
The 14 Best Songs of 2014: Bobby Shmurda, Future Islands, Drake, and MoreMarlow Stern
December 31, 2014
“I think the attacks on Fareed are distorted, irresponsible, and unfair,” Weisberg emailed.
I speak here to warn people that the facts presented in the opera are incomplete and distorted.
What we hear about the women of Everest is often sensationalized, exaggerated, reimagined or distorted—if we hear anything at all.
But the Mandela legacy has also given South Africa a distorted sense of exceptionalism.
Historical Examples
That face, now ashy white, was distorted into a diabolical grin.
Howard Pyle's Book of PiratesHoward Pyle
The lurid light of the fire showed us ourselves in distorted shadows.
A Woman TenderfootGrace Gallatin Seton-Thompson
The face of the dead man was distorted and blackened by the agony of strangulation.
Henry DunbarM. E. Braddon
His view's so distorted it makes me mad, but there's something in it you can't get away from.
The HarborErnest Poole
And her face was distorted by an emotion that seemed of sorrow and anger mingled.
A Spirit in PrisonRobert Hichens
distort
- (often passive) to twist or pull out of shape; make bent or misshapen; contort; deform
- to alter or misrepresent (facts, motives, etc)
- electronics to reproduce or amplify (a signal) inaccurately, changing the shape of the waveform
Word Origin
C16: from Latin distortus misshapen, from distorquēre to turn different ways, from dis- 1 + torquēre to twist
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for distorted
distort
v.
1580s, from Latin distortus, past participle of distorquere "to twist different ways, distort," from dis- "completely" + torquere "to twist" (see thwart). Related: Distorted; distorting.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper