pervert
Americanverb (used with object)
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to affect with perversion.
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to lead astray morally.
- Synonyms:
- demoralize, corrupt, seduce
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to turn away from the right course.
- Synonyms:
- divert
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to lead into mental error or false judgment.
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to turn to an improper use; misapply.
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to misconstrue or misinterpret, especially deliberately; distort.
to pervert someone's statement.
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to bring to a less excellent state; vitiate; debase.
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Pathology. to change to what is unnatural or abnormal.
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to convert or persuade to a religious belief regarded as false or wrong.
noun
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a person who practices sexual perversion.
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Pathology. a person affected with perversion.
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a person who has been perverted, or turned from what is right, especially to a religious belief regarded as erroneous.
verb
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to use wrongly or badly
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to interpret wrongly or badly; distort
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to lead into deviant or perverted beliefs or behaviour; corrupt
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to debase
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of pervert
First recorded in 1300–50; (for the verb) Middle English perverten, from Latin pervertere “to overturn, subvert,” from per- per- + vertere “to turn”; (for the noun) noun use of obsolete pervert “perverted”
Explanation
To pervert something is to corrupt it. For example, you could "pervert the course of justice" by lying on the witness stand. Another common use of pervert is as a word for a person who is sexually deviant; however, people also use this word more loosely to describe anyone who seems creepy. Perverting also means changing or subverting something. A cop who breaks the law is perverting the law. A criminal who convinces other people to become criminals is perverting them. So when you think of pervert, think change — change for the worse.
Vocabulary lists containing pervert
Antigone, Lines 710–1500
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Vocabulary from Readings 4, Unit 4
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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.
Tolkien, a scholar of Old English, studied the “theory of courage” found in poems such as the ancient epic “Beowulf,” redeeming what he called the “noble northern spirit” from the fascists who would pervert it.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 22, 2026
Two other people - Emma McVie, 27, and Gary Robertson 22 - also appeared at the High Court in Edinburgh and pleaded guilty to attempting to pervert the course of justice.
From BBC • Nov. 13, 2025
Lancashire Police said 52-year-old Lisa Green - Wellings' mother - and 28-year-old Emma Croft - his girlfriend - were held on suspicion of committing an act with intent to pervert the course of public justice.
From BBC • Aug. 4, 2025
Acting High Court of Fiji Chief Justice Salesi Temo sentenced the 70-year-old in the capital Suva on a conviction for attempting to pervert the course of justice.
From Seattle Times • May 8, 2024
"Nah, you just got me mad, that's all. You were calling me a pervert, remember? And I didn't want you to think that."
From "Things Not Seen" by Andrew Clements
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.
