perverse

Also found in: Thesaurus, Medical, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia.

per·verse

(pər-vûrs′, pûr′vûrs′)

adj.

1. Contrary to what is right or good; wicked or depraved: a perverse world of sinners.

a. Characterized by or resulting from willful opposition or resistance to what is right, expected, or reasonable: "Geneticists have the perverse habit of naming genes by what goes wrong when they mutate" (Richard Dawkins).

b. Willfully opposing or resisting what is right, expected, or reasonable: an understanding of the text that only a perverse reader could reach.

3. Having an effect opposite to what is intended or expected: "Regulation [of child care] to increase quality may have the perverse effect of driving some children into unregulated care" (Kathryn M. Neckerman).

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

per·verse′ly adv.

per·verse′ness n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

perverse

(pəˈvɜːs)

adj

1. deliberately deviating from what is regarded as normal, good, or proper

2. persistently holding to what is wrong

3. wayward or contrary; obstinate; cantankerous

4. archaic perverted

[C14: from Old French pervers, from Latin perversus turned the wrong way]

perˈversely adv

perˈverseness n

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

per•verse

(pərˈvɜrs)

adj.

1. willfully determined not to do what is expected or desired; contrary.

2. characterized by or proceeding from such a determination: a perverse mood.

3. wayward or cantankerous.

4. turned away from what is right, good, or proper; wicked or corrupt.

[1325–75; Middle English < Latin perversus facing the wrong way, askew, orig. past participle of pervertere. See pervert]

per•verse′ly, adv.

per•verse′ness, n.

per•ver′si•ty, n., pl. -ties.

syn: See willful.

perverse

awkward - Comes from Old Norse awk, "perverse," and weard, "in the direction of," i.e. "turned back upon itself" or "turned backward."
crabby, crabbed - Crabby and crabbed derive from a crab's sideways movement and habit of snapping (thought to suggest a perverse or irritable nature).
peeve - A back-formation from peevish, "perverse, obstinate."
queer - Comes from the German root quer, "across, oblique, perverse."

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Switch to new thesaurus

Adj.	1.	perverse - marked by a disposition to oppose and contradict; "took perverse satisfaction in foiling her plans" negative - characterized by or displaying negation or denial or opposition or resistance; having no positive features; "a negative outlook on life"; "a colorless negative personality"; "a negative evaluation"; "a negative reaction to an advertising campaign"
	2.	perverse - resistant to guidance or discipline; "Mary Mary quite contrary"; "an obstinate child with a violent temper"; "a perverse mood"; "wayward behavior" wayward, contrary, obstinate disobedient - not obeying or complying with commands of those in authority; "disobedient children"
	3.	perverse - deviating from what is considered moral or right or proper or good; "depraved criminals"; "a perverted sense of loyalty"; "the reprobate conduct of a gambling aristocrat" depraved, reprobate, perverted corrupt - lacking in integrity; "humanity they knew to be corrupt...from the day of Adam's creation"; "a corrupt and incompetent city government"

perverse

adjective

1. stubborn, contrary, unreasonable, dogged, contradictory, troublesome, rebellious, wayward, delinquent, intractable, wilful, unyielding, obstinate, intransigent, headstrong, unmanageable, cussed (informal), obdurate, stiff-necked, disobedient, wrong-headed, refractory, pig-headed, miscreant, mulish, cross-grained, contumacious You're just being perverse.
stubborn cooperative, agreeable, flexible, accommodating, complaisant, obliging, obedient, malleable

2. ill-natured, cross, surly, petulant, crabbed, fractious, spiteful, churlish, ill-tempered, stroppy (Brit. slang), cantankerous, peevish, shrewish He seems to take a perverse pleasure in being disagreeable.
ill-natured agreeable, amiable, good-natured

3. abnormal, incorrect, unhealthy, improper, deviant, depraved perverse sexual practices

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

perverse

adjective

1. Utterly reprehensible in nature or behavior:

corrupt, degenerate, depraved, flagitious, miscreant, rotten, unhealthy, villainous.

2. Tenaciously unwilling to yield:

bullheaded, dogged, hardheaded, headstrong, mulish, obstinate, pertinacious, pigheaded, stiff-necked, tenacious, willful.

3. Given to acting in opposition to others:

balky, contrarious, contrary, difficult, froward, impossible, ornery, wayward.

Translations

فاسِد، مُفْسِد للأخْلاقمُنْحَرِف، شِرّير

zavilýzvrácený

genstridigstædigsygelig

abartig verkehrt verstockt

pervers

òvermóîskufullurspilltur; ósanngjarn

deviare ostinato perversione pervertire pervertito

įnoringainesukalbamaspriešgynumaspriešgynus

aplamsietiepīgsnesaprātīgsperverss

gjenstridig pervers

zvrhlý

aksi huysuz münasebetsiz ters

不通情理的任性的反常的执拗的背理的

perverse

[pəˈvɜːs] ADJ (= contrary) → retorcido; (= obstinate) → terco, contumaz; (= wicked) → perverso
human nature is perverse → el hombre es perverso por naturaleza
I took a perverse pleasure in his predicament → verlo en un aprieto me producía un placer perverso

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

perverse

[pə^rˈvɜː^rs] adj

[delight, pleasure] → pervers(e)
to take a perverse delight in doing sth → prendre un plaisir pervers à faire qch
He takes a perverse delight in irritating people → Il prend un plaisir pervers à irriter les gens.

(= odd) [logic] → pervers(e)

(= unreasonable) it would be perverse to ... → il serait absurde de ..., il serait contraire au bon sens de ...

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

perverse

adj (= contrary) idea → abwegig; (= perverted) → pervers, widernatürlich; it would be perverse to refuse → es wäre unsinnig abzulehnen

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

perverse

[pəˈvɜːs] adj (contrary, behaviour) → da bastian contrario; (wicked) → cattivo/a; (desires) → perverso/a; (circumstances) → avverso/a
to be perverse (person) → essere un bastian contrario

perverse

(pəˈvəːs) adjective

1. continuing to do, think etc something which one knows, or which one has been told, is wrong or unreasonable. a perverse child.

2. deliberately wrong; unreasonable. perverse behaviour.

perˈversely adverb

perˈverseness noun

perˈversity noun

References in classic literature ?

The driver, seeing him thus stop, laid his whip lustily about his shoulders and said, "O you perverse dull-head!

View in context

Frederica must be as much as sixteen, and ought to know better; but from what her mother insinuates, I am afraid she is a perverse girl.

View in context

Thus, all that Lucy had effected by her zealous mediation was to fill Tom's mind with the expectation that Maggie's perverse resolve to go into a situation again would presently metamorphose itself, as her resolves were apt to do, into something equally perverse, but entirely different,--a marriage with Philip Wakem.

View in context

It was a look so intelligent, yet inexplicable, perverse, sometimes so malicious, but generally accompanied by a wild flow of spirits, that Hester could not help questioning at such moments whether Pearl was a human child.

View in context

He had picked up his hat, which he had brought in, and stood twirling it in a way that gave me, even as I was just nearly reaching port, a perverse horror of what I was doing.

View in context

Yet I am of opinion, this defect arises chiefly from a perverse, restive disposition; for they are cunning, malicious, treacherous, and revengeful.

View in context

And that is not all: even if man really were nothing but a piano-key, even if this were proved to him by natural science and mathematics, even then he would not become reasonable, but would purposely do something perverse out of simple ingratitude, simply to gain his point.

View in context

Even Tertius, that most perverse of men, was always subdued in the long-run: events had been obstinate, but still Rosamond would have said now, as she did before her marriage, that she never gave up what she had set her mind on.

View in context

Wyvil assisted them by advice which was equally wise and kind--but which afterward proved, under the perverse influence of circumstances, to be advice that he had better not have given.

View in context

'You were always perverse, Julian, as a child, in your likings and dislikings," Lady Janet rejoined.

View in context

All these summons proving ineffectual (for the captain had, by perverse accident, betaken himself to a new walk that evening), Mrs Blifil declared she was seriously frightened.

View in context

Even in running away, however, Whisker was perverse, for he had not gone very far when he suddenly stopped, and before assistance could be rendered, commenced backing at nearly as quick a pace as he had gone forward.