Main Entry: de·form

Pronunciation: \di-ˈfȯrm, dē-\

Function: verb

Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French or Latin; Anglo-French desfurmer, from Latin deformare, from de- + formare to form, from forma form

Date: 15th century

transitive verb 1 : to spoil the form of
2 a : to spoil the looks of : disfigure <a face deformed by bitterness> b : to mar the character of <a marriage deformed by jealousy>
3 : to alter the shape of by stressintransitive verb : to become misshapen or changed in shape

— de·form·able \-mə-bəl\ adjective

synonyms deform, distort, contort, warp means to mar or spoil by or as if by twisting. deform may imply a change of shape through stress, injury, or some accident of growth <his face was deformed by hatred>. distort and contort both imply a wrenching from the natural, normal, or justly proportioned, but contort suggests a more involved twisting and a more grotesque and painful result <the odd camera angle distorts the figure in the photograph> <disease had painfully contorted her body>. warp indicates physically an uneven shrinking that bends or twists out of a flat plane <warped floorboards>.