misshapen
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of misshapen
1350–1400; Middle English: past participle of misshape; see -en 3
Explanation
Something that has an abnormal form or shape is misshapen. For example, you might find an old misshapen Barbie, with messy hair and missing limbs, at the bottom of a toy chest. Things that are so malformed or distorted that they look weird or ugly are misshapen. Ballet dancers sometimes end up with misshapen feet after years of cramming them into pointe shoes, and when you grow your own vegetables in your back yard, you often end up with misshapen ones that taste delicious. Misshapen comes from the Old English roots mis, "wrong," and scapan, "to create or form."
Vocabulary lists containing misshapen
Wonder
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Number the Stars
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The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
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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.
The balls of both feet and the ends of both pointer toes had been mashed into misshapen blisters.
From Slate ● Jun. 5, 2026
From the ashes she pulled a strange assortment of survivors: fragments of ceramic plates, misshapen metal and coffee mugs that no public health authority would recommend using.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 20, 2025
While the blobfish is known for its misshapen silhouette, in its natural deep-sea habitat it actually resembles a regular fish, with its shape kept together by the high water pressure.
From BBC ● Mar. 19, 2025
So-called "ugly" produce — misshapen food that never makes it to the grocery store because of its looks — falls into this category.
From Salon ● Aug. 14, 2024
In the gas-short seventies, however, when the manufacturer came out with the unfortunate Seville—a car that looked as though it had been rear-ended—I also felt misshapen.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
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.
