distort
Americanverb (used with object)
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distorts,
present (3rd person singular)
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distorted,
past participle, past
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distorting
present participle
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to twist awry or out of shape; make crooked or deformed.
Arthritis had distorted his fingers.
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to give a false, perverted, or disproportionate meaning to; misrepresent.
to distort the facts.
- Synonyms:
- misstate, falsify, twist, misconstrue, pervert
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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.
verb
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(often passive) to twist or pull out of shape; make bent or misshapen; contort; deform
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to alter or misrepresent (facts, motives, etc)
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electronics to reproduce or amplify (a signal) inaccurately, changing the shape of the waveform
Synonym Usage
See misrepresent.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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distortednessnoun
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distorternoun
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overdistortverb (used with object)
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distortedadjective
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distortiveadjective
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nondistortingadjective
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nondistortiveadjective
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undistortingadjective
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distortedlyadverb
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nondistortinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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distortsimple
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distortssimple
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have distortedperfect
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has distortedperfect
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am distortingprogressive
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are distortingprogressive
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is distortingprogressive
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have been distortingperfect progressive
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has been distortingperfect progressive
Past
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distortedsimple
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had distortedperfect
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was distortingprogressive
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were distortingprogressive
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had been distortingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of distort
1580–90; from Latin distortus (past participle of distorquēre “to distort”), equivalent to dis- dis- 1 + tor(qu)- (stem of torquēre “to twist”) + -tus past participle suffix
Explanation
Distort means to twist out of shape. When you look at a tree through a twisting kaleidoscope, you distort its image, making its branches and leaves look wavy and misshapen. Distort is a verb that means to change the shape of something. You can distort pretzel dough by twisting it into the shape of an "S" instead of a normal pretzel shape. You can also distort, or change, the meaning of something. When one distorts the truth, it might not be an out-and-out lie; it could just be an exaggeration — like telling your pals you caught a six-foot tuna when you actually landed a six-inch minnow.
Vocabulary lists containing distort
Twists and Turns: Tor
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Metamorphosis
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Number the Stars
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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:
Add in the ever-growing quality of deepfakes, and it has never been easier to not only distort reality, but also to establish one’s own beachhead on it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
The practice “may distort competition, stifle innovation, and potentially lead to monopolies or market concentration in strategic sectors,” as the Center for Strategic and International Studies put it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
She added: "No matter what noises exist out there, nothing will be able to distort my reality or be more real to me or not as real to me as this love that we share."
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
All of these categories can distort or exaggerate GDP for reasons that have little to do with the health of the overall economy.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026
At The Maids, a housecleaning service, I am given something called the “Accutrac personality test,” which warns at the beginning that “Accutrac has multiple measures which detect attempts to distort or ‘psych out’ the questionnaire.”
From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich
However, the map severely distorts the shapes of Earth's landmasses, making them all look slightly off.
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026
“Corruption doesn’t just slow progress, it distorts it. It raises costs, weakens competition, and erodes the trust that markets depend on. It’s not a victimless problem,” Johnson said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 26, 2026
"J1007+3540 is one of the clearest and most spectacular examples of episodic AGN with jet-cluster interaction, where the surrounding hot gas bends, compresses, and distorts the jets," Dr. Pal explained.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 13, 2026
December over whether the company might have been granted funding that distorts the bloc’s market for threat-detection systems.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 3, 2026
If anyone distorts, it’s that mother of hers.
From "The Pigman" by Paul Zindel
In retrospect, Robert Freeman’s autumnal, artfully distorted photograph was an entirely apt image for a worldlier, darker, more grown-up Beatles record.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
The band’s joyful energy was more suitable for bopping than brooding, and Mr. Casablancas’s detached and distorted delivery is distant from grunge’s anguished growls.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026
Bianco thinks the era of financial repression has given investors a distorted view of what returns they should expect from stocks and bonds.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 30, 2026
Kushwaha later said his remarks had been "distorted and misrepresented" and promised action against those responsible.
From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026
The glass windows I pass reflect a distorted vision of myself—face elongated, dark jeans stretched too long, black gloves, beat-up boots, faded red scarf wrapped around my black hoodie.
From "Warcross" by Marie Lu
French motorists are clogging TotalEnergies service stations to fill up with discount gasoline but its rivals are crying foul, accusing the energy giant of distorting competition with the encouragement of the government.
From Barron's ● Sep. 16, 2026
Mr. Druckenmiller argues that such transactions interfere with prices, distorting valuable messages that could be inferred from the market.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
Signs that retail interest could be distorting prices aren’t hard to find: Shares of retail favorites tend to see greater underperformance following a disappointing earnings report, Ali noted.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 25, 2026
In short, City effectively stand accused of subverting Premier League rules that clubs had agreed to comply with, and of distorting the competition over multiple seasons.
From BBC ● May 19, 2026
My swollen face and mouth were still distorting my speech.
From "Kindred" by Octavia Butler
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.
