deviant
Americanadjective
noun
-
deviants
plural
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of deviant
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Late Latin dēviant-, stem of dēviāns “straying,” present participle of dēviāre “to stray, turn from the road”; see deviate
Explanation
A deviant is someone whose behavior falls far outside of society's norms; as an adjective, deviant can describe the behavior itself. For example, a fifty-year-old punk rocker has a deviant appearance, compared to his peers. That aging punk deviates, or departs from the norm, of people his age. Both deviant and deviate come from the Latin word deviare, meaning "to turn out of the way." Deviants experience this turning away from society, either by choice, or in the case of someone who has harmed another, perhaps by sexual abuse, by being cast out by people who want nothing to do with them.
Vocabulary lists containing deviant
Latin Love, Vol I: via
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The Field Guide to the North American Teenager
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Little Brother
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Thompson was part of the wave of artists in the 1950s who explored the darker, deviant impulses of American life.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 2, 2026
"The only way I could describe it is it was just deviant," she tells us - using that word without any knowledge of the GSK research which had established a link with such behaviour.
From BBC ● Mar. 11, 2025
That gave people an excuse to start pulling the masks down and indulging in the deviant behaviors often celebrated by drill rappers.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 10, 2023
The cruel irony here is that whistleblowers like Snowden continue to be derided as deviant misfits who are out for fame, profit, revenge or self-aggrandizement.
From Salon ● May 30, 2023
Lowie further writes that the horse of a deviant hunter would be beaten and that any buffalo hides taken by him would be destroyed.
From Shoshone-Bannock Subsistence and Society by Robert F. Murphy
The aberrant child vampire highlights inequality, a deviant even among deviants.
From Salon ● Oct. 30, 2022
He had grown up in India but was studying sociology in London and had been awarded a grant to research political "deviants".
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2022
The only reason I could think of is that these people are deviants who get their sick kicks from being stuck in traffic and knowing that others are stuck in traffic, too.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 4, 2019
But women’s activists argue it sends a message that women who abort are social deviants who need correction.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 6, 2016
I can understand why things are so strict here, because it is the best school around for the rich deviants of tomorrow.
From "Winger" by Andrew Smith
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
