as in abnormal
departing from some accepted standard of what is normal
some studies show that many violent criminals begin exhibiting deviant behavior in early childhood
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in maverick
a person who does not conform to generally accepted standards or customs
branded as social deviants by a society that did not value self-expression
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of deviant
Christopher R. Browning, The New York Review of Books, 1 Dec. 2022
The Florida bill’s opponents are worried about a world in which teachers have no meaningful way to discuss the real world inhabited by their students, which risks leaving students with the impression that non-straight or non-gender-conforming individuals are somehow deviant.
—Washington Post, 12 Apr. 2022
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 27 Jan. 2025
While reports from the Office of Justice Programs do suggest that children of criminals and abusers are more likely to exhibit deviant behavior, there are always exceptions.
—Mark Travers, Forbes, 24 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for deviant
Adjective
Jähner does not comment on no one seeming to have drawn the lesson that the anti-Semitic stereotype of dishonest and deviant economic behavior that Germans had long identified as a Jewish racial characteristic had turned out to be situationally, not racially, caused.
—Christopher R. Browning, The New York Review of Books, 1 Dec. 2022
The Florida bill’s opponents are worried about a world in which teachers have no meaningful way to discuss the real world inhabited by their students, which risks leaving students with the impression that non-straight or non-gender-conforming individuals are somehow deviant.
—Washington Post, 12 Apr. 2022
Noun
The deviants trying to lure them into statutory rape, however, were real.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 27 Jan. 2025
While reports from the Office of Justice Programs do suggest that children of criminals and abusers are more likely to exhibit deviant behavior, there are always exceptions.
—Mark Travers, Forbes, 24 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for deviant
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deviant
Adjective
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Storm surge is defined by the National Hurricane Center as an abnormal rise of water generated by a storm.—
Mallory Nicholls,
The Orlando Sentinel,
27 May 2025
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One or more other symptoms like abnormal eye movements (nystagmus), vomiting, paleness, or fearfulness are also present.—
Colleen Doherty,
Verywell Health,
26 May 2025
Noun
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Garrett, a maverick who put the Portuguese town of Nazaré on the map for its massive waves, set a record there, surfing a 78-footer — imagine an eight-story office building coming up behind you.—
Yvonne Villarreal,
Los Angeles Times,
23 May 2025
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Trump had called out Massie by name during the meeting, ribbing the Kentucky maverick for opposing the legislation at the heart of the president’s domestic agenda.—
Mike Lillis,
The Hill,
20 May 2025
Adjective
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While there are certainly products that can be used across different hair textures, lengths, curl patterns, thicknesses, colors (natural and unnatural), and needs, hair products are often created with specific consumers in mind.—
Christa Joanna Lee,
Allure,
18 May 2025
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For her, the idea of being surrounded by people, especially while grieving, felt overwhelming and unnatural.—
Ashley Vega,
People.com,
1 May 2025
Noun
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To take her mind off him, Agathe meets an Austen-like family of eccentrics running the retreat and the sometimes pretentious writers attending it.—
Randy Myers,
Mercury News,
22 May 2025
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But the settlers’ belief in the value of public goods and embrace of independent thinkers remain woven into the character of the city, which continues to attract artists, eccentrics and writers.—
Isabelle Taft,
New York Times,
4 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Deviant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deviant. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
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