Perverted

Part of speech: adjective, verb

Definitions

1. Morally corrupted, showing deviant or abnormal behavior ; altered from the original or intended form or meaning in a harmful or improper way
2. Behaving in a way that deviates from generally accepted moral standards ; distorted or misused from its initial purpose or sense
3. Exhibiting morally twisted tendencies or actions ; changed so as to no longer reflect the true or correct nature

Etymology: "Pervert" comes from Latin "pervertere," meaning "to turn upside down" or "to overturn," built from "per-" (through, thoroughly) and "vertere" (to turn). The root image is physical: something turned so far around that it ends up in the wrong position. The English verb carried that sense of forcible overturning for centuries before it came to describe turning a person or a practice away from what is right. The word "perverted" is the past participle and adjective form of that verb, from "pervert" with the ending "-ed." Its adjective use, meaning deeply morally warped, grew naturally out of the verb's older sense of distorting something from its proper course, so a "perverted" person is one whose sense of right and wrong has been bent out of shape.

Synonyms: distorted, corrupted, deviated, twisted, misguided

Antonyms: pure, virtuous, upright, moral, innocent