perverse

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"Incest complex"--Now too the child under the influence of occasional seduction may become polymorphous-perverse, that is, may become subject to any form of sexual perversion.

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Definitions (14)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (5)

  1. adjective Directed away from what is right or good; perverted.
  2. adjective Obstinately persisting in an error or fault; wrongly self-willed or stubborn.
  3. adjective Marked by a disposition to oppose and contradict.

Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (5)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (1)

Toggle WordNet definitions WordNet (3)

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Examples (50)

  • "Amok is the research guide to all the sordid thoughts you'd never discuss at lunch ... the index of all that we hold obscure, perverse, and dear." —  Original Signal - Transmitting Buzz
  • Persistent attempts to portray GAFCON as a breakaway movement or an attempt to split the Anglican Communion are perverse, almost malign. —  SA Latest News
  • "It is not just compensation, but incentives -- perverse incentives for executives to produce (short-term) profit rather than long-term growth," said Cuomo, of the practices that are now under the microscope. —  Yahoo! Buzz US: Top Stories
  • "Incest complex"--Now too the child under the influence of occasional seduction may become polymorphous-perverse, that is, may become subject to any form of sexual perversion. —  Studies in Forensic Psychiatry
  • My brain is not equal to seeing clearly into these dark intrigues--perverse, ignoble, infamous! —  Poor Relations
 

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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

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Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (2)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Middle English pervers, from Old French, from Latin perversus, past participle of pervertere, to pervert; see pervert.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. from French pervers = Spanish Portuguese Italian perverso, from Latin perversus, perverse, turned the wrong way, askew, not right, past participle of pervertere, turn around, pervert: see pervert.
 

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/pərˈvərs/
by American Heritage

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