perverse
Americanadjective
-
willfully determined or disposed to go counter to what is expected or desired; contrary.
- Synonyms:
- disobedient, contumacious
- Antonyms:
- agreeable
-
characterized by or proceeding from such a determination or disposition.
a perverse mood.
-
wayward or cantankerous.
-
persistent or obstinate in what is wrong.
- Synonyms:
- headstrong, stubborn
- Antonyms:
- tractable
-
turned away from or rejecting what is right, good, or proper; wicked or corrupt.
adjective
-
deliberately deviating from what is regarded as normal, good, or proper
-
persistently holding to what is wrong
-
wayward or contrary; obstinate; cantankerous
-
archaic perverted
Synonym Usage
See willful.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of perverse
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, Middle French pervers, “wicked, unnatural,” from Latin perversus “facing the wrong way, askew,” past participle of pervertere “to turn around, overturn”; see pervert
Explanation
Something that's perverse is deviant — it's not completely acceptable, and it may be even a little strange. Your perverse sense of humor probably makes some of your friends laugh while others just look uncomfortable. Something perverse is unusual, possibly somewhat weird, and even immoral, like that time the odd kid in class announced that a love poem was really all about lovingly poisoning squirrels and no one sat next to him for a week afterwards. That kid's perspective was perverse. Perverse can also mean "stubbornly contradictory" or "perverted." The word originally meant "wicked," from the Latin perversus, "turned away or askew," and figuratively, "turned away from what is right."
Vocabulary lists containing perverse
Romeo and Juliet
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The Balcony Scene from "Romeo and Juliet"
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"Marigolds"
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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.
We had used $5,500 as our year-end target but lowered it to $5,000 after gold’s perverse performance.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 26, 2026
That sort of bad art is thin gruel compared to really bad art: works that are ethically perverse, immoral or debauched.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
Maybe someday we’ll have leaders who understand the internet and the importance of avoiding perverse incentives.
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026
It followed the publication of a Social Security Advisory Committee report, external which warned of the "perverse effects" of the benefits system on young people's employment choices.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Sometimes I thought I heard Edmond’s voice in my head but it always turned out to be my subconscious replaying old tapes out of some perverse kind of nostalgia.
From "How I Live Now" by Meg Rosoff
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.
