deviant
different from accepted social standards
Very different from what most people think is normal or acceptable, especially in how someone behaves or in sexual matters.
[something] is deviant / deviant [behavior/practices]
- The study focused on deviant behavior among teenagers in urban areas.
- Some groups argue that what counts as deviant sexual conduct changes over time.
- The film explores how a deviant lifestyle can develop when young people feel excluded.
- In many cultures, refusing to marry can still be viewed as deviant for women.
- Teachers were trained to identify deviant patterns in students' online activity that might signal risk.
- The police watch for deviant behavior in the city center at night.
- In that small town, living alone at thirty was seen as deviant.
- The book explains why some young people start to show deviant behavior.
- Different cultures do not always agree on what is deviant.
- Her ideas were called deviant because they were very different from tradition.
person who breaks social norms
A person who acts in a way that most people think is very wrong or not normal, often in a criminal or sexual way.
[someone] is a deviant
- The media portrayed him as a dangerous deviant who could not be trusted.
- Early criminology often tried to identify physical traits that marked a person as a deviant.
- She argued that society creates deviants by pushing some people to the margins.
- Neighbors described the suspect as a quiet man, not a deviant or a troublemaker.
- The documentary challenges the idea that people labeled as deviants are always harmful.
- The court called him a deviant because of his crimes.
- Some people see artists as deviants, but others see them as free thinkers.
- In that strict community, anyone different could be called a deviant.
- The book tells the life story of a social deviant.
- She does not want her son to be seen as a deviant at school.
statistically different from the norm
In statistics, different in a clear way from what the numbers normally show or from the average result.
[data point] is deviant / deviant [case/value]
- Researchers dropped several highly deviant cases from the analysis.
- One deviant data point can strongly affect the correlation in a small sample.
- The model failed to predict deviant values at the extreme end of the scale.
- These deviant observations suggest that a different process may be at work.
- Statisticians must decide whether a deviant score is an error or a meaningful result.
- The scientist removed deviant scores from the test results.
- They studied the deviant cases to understand the problem better.
- One deviant value changed the average by a lot.
- These deviant data points do not follow the line on the graph.
- The report explains why the numbers are deviant in that year.
- Base: deviant
- Base: deviant
- Plural: deviants
deviant behavior
1behavior that breaks social rules
Behavior that is very different from what most people think is normal or right, often in a moral, criminal, or sexual way.
- The report links deviant behavior in youth to family conflict and poverty.
- Teachers are trained to recognize signs of deviant behavior in the classroom.
- Sociologists disagree about what should count as deviant behavior in modern societies.
deviant subculture
4group that rejects social norms
A small group in a society whose shared ideas and behavior go against the main social rules.
- The study examined how a deviant subculture developed among street gangs.
- Online forums can help a deviant subculture grow and connect across countries.
- Some researchers argue that what is called a deviant subculture is often just a youth style.
sexual deviant
3person with socially rejected sexual behavior
A person whose sexual behavior is seen by most people as very wrong or not normal.
- The headline described the suspect as a sexual deviant wanted in three states.
- Labeling someone a sexual deviant can cause lifelong social harm.
- Older medical texts sometimes used the term "sexual deviant" in a clinical way.
social deviant
2person who breaks social norms
A person who often acts in ways that do not follow important social rules or customs.
- In that conservative town, unmarried mothers were treated as social deviants.
- The author argues that social deviants can sometimes drive positive change.
- Schools tend to isolate students they see as social deviants.