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distorted

distorted

4.4
Changed from the original meaning so it makes people believe something wrong
  • adjective
  • /dɪˈstɔrtɪd/
translation icon : distorsionado
  • Money dysmorphia is when you are unhappy with your own financial situation because you have a distorted view of your finances.

So many people want to believe in a distorted version of karma, right?

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Examples

  • I think that the ideal of what a woman has to be or can be is very distorted by pornography.

  • We talk about cognitive behavioral therapy and distorted thinking and perception.

  • And it gives you a distorted vision of reality.

  • Then there are other things that were distorted when they started writing it down.

  • So the more input that you get, the more distorted things become.

  • But again, the definitions have gotten sort of distorted, I think, right?

  • We're living in this distorted culture of accumulation instead of contribution.

  • And generally speaking, there's a kind of consensus among scholars that it may be a a weirdly distorted shadow or representation of a scholar.

  • Many news articles provide a distorted view of the events that occurred last year.

  • She realized that her memories of the incident were distorted by years of reflection.

Synonyms

misleading
vsdistorted
148 4.4

Giving a wrong idea that makes people believe false things

involves an actual change of meaning, not only a false impression
twisted
vsdistorted
107 5.8

Changed on purpose to make people believe something untrue

can change unintentionally rather than with purposeful deception
perverted
vsdistorted
  • Formal
4 7.7

Changed so the original meaning is no longer true

can be a milder change or not completely untrue
misrepresented
vsdistorted
5.6

Shown in a false way that gives people the wrong idea

is a broader change that can occur without deliberate false presentation
corrupted
vsdistorted
5.3

A file or text changed by errors so it no longer works

focuses on meaning change rather than general errors or damage

Antonyms

680 3.0

Exactly correct in every detail

Compounds

Something that no longer looks like its original form after bending or heat

How Misleading

distorted
4.4
misleading
148 4.4
inaccurate
113 4.3

Surface Forms

distorted positive

Morphology

distorted = distort (transparent) = distort + ed

The adjective is a standard past-participial/adjectival form of the verb 'distort' and its meaning follows directly from the verb.

Etymology

Distorted comes from Latin parts dis- ('apart') and torquere ('to twist'), the same root you find in contort. So when information is distorted it is like the truth has been 'twisted apart', which can make it wrong or misleading.