nonconformity

American  

[non-kuhn-fawr-mi-tee] / ˌnɒn kənˈfɔr mɪ ti /

noun

1. failure or refusal to conform, as with established customs, attitudes, or ideas.

2. lack of conformity or agreement.

3. (often initial capital letter) refusal to conform to the Church of England.

4. Geology. an unconformity that separates crystalline rocks, either igneous or metamorphic, from sedimentary rocks.

---

nonconformity British  

/ ˌnɒnkənˈfɔːmɪtɪ /

noun

1. failure or refusal to conform

2. absence of agreement or harmony

---

Etymology

Origin of nonconformity

First recorded in 1610–20; non- + conformity

Explanation

If a fireman came to work in a police outfit or clown suit, that would be a clear case of nonconformity. Where there's nonconformity, there's difference. When everyone is acting or dressing exactly the same, there's conformity, not nonconformity. Nonconformity means that someone is doing things differently from the norm. People in authority tend to dislike nonconformity, because it makes people harder to control. Someone who demonstrates nonconformity most of the time is a nonconformist. Too much nonconformity can create chaos, but without a little nonconformity, life would be pretty boring.

Example Sentences

What do you make of the scene from “Encounters at the End of the World” going viral, with people using the image of a penguin walking away from its colony as a symbol of nonconformity?

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 16, 2026

These included books like Uncle Bobby’s Wedding and My Rainbow—stories that portray same-sex couples, gender nonconformity, and affirming representations of queer families.

From Slate • Apr. 23, 2025

His fictional character, a hyperactive, bow-tied man-child, provided subversive messages about nonconformity in films such as “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” and his classic Saturday morning TV show, “Pee-wee’s Playhouse.”

From Salon • Jan. 30, 2025

For the target, as “Fellow Travelers” intuits, isn’t queerness, or racial equality, or anti-capitalism per se, but nonconformity of any sort, which power seeks to stamp out for its own preservation.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 10, 2023

Mica Area High School—MAHS—was not exactly a hotbed of nonconformity.

From "Stargirl" by Jerry Spinelli