deviant

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   Differing sharply from what is normal or socially accepted.

   The study examined the causes of deviant behavior in teenagers.

2. 2
   noun

   A person whose behavior departs from accepted social or moral norms.

   He was branded a deviant and shunned by the community.

From Middle English devyaunt (“deviating, different”), from Late Latin dēviāns, present participle of dēviō (“to stray, deviate or detour”). The noun is from the adjective, possibly attested in Middle English with the meaning “one who goes astray”. * (DeviantArt member): So called because the website was originally for people who modified (deviated) computer applications.

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