neurodivergent
Americanadjective
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of neurodivergent
First recorded in 2000–05; neuro- ( def. ) + divergent ( def. )
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.
“Listen to your body” is lovely advice until you are neurodivergent, burned out, staring into the refrigerator at 8:17 p.m. or otherwise unable to locate your body’s supposedly innate wisdom about dinner.
From Salon ● Sep. 15, 2026
“Because if you identify and support someone who’s autistic or neurodivergent early in life, then they’re never going to develop this idea that something’s wrong with them.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
Using the Ministry of Justice's online judgments database, the company identified 517 employment tribunal cases mentioning neurodivergent conditions in 2025, up from 265 in 2020.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
Jake Collective, a nonprofit foundation founded in Schreiber’s honor, is partnering with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention on a five-year, $5 million research initiative devoted the mental health needs of neurodivergent children and adolescents.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
Ms. Lane describes a family that “unschooled” its neurodivergent daughter in the 1990s and notes that now nearly half of homeschooling families do not count religion among their reasons for choosing home education.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
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.
