distorted

adjective

dis·​tort·​ed di-ˈstȯr-təd 

: altered from a true, natural, or normal state, shape, or condition

a distorted image

a distorted view/understanding of the situation

a distorted account of what happened

The public is, I believe, dimly aware of this aspect of ethnography, perhaps in romantically distorted ways, but aware nonetheless.

—Roy A. Rappaport

What happens is that you realize people in other countries tend to reach distorted conclusions about the U.S., and you feel obligated to provide what you believe is a full and balanced appraisal.

—Norman Cousins

Synonyms

• monstrous
• deformed
• misshapen
• malformed
• mutant

Examples of distorted in a Sentence

surgery to correct a distorted foot

Recent Examples on the Web

The shoe manages to look both retro and futuristic at the same time through its distorted 2000s design language. —Riley Jones, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2025

Neutrons occupy unexpected shells and give rise to nuclei with distorted shapes and unusual properties compared to their more stable neighbors. —Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 3 Sep. 2025

By contrast, Rose of Nevada is much more of an out-and-out genre piece than either, drifting closer to horror than the director ever has before, while retaining his haunting, glitchy, hand-distressed style, the cinematic equivalent of artist Francis Bacon’s distorted face paintings. —Damon Wise, Deadline, 30 Aug. 2025

The president has an uncanny ability to reframe national attention by taking the focus off his failures with distractions based on the repetition of distorted statistics, fortified by large ceremonial events. —Jason Ma, Fortune, 25 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1579, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for distorted

• aborted
• assorted
• comported
• consorted
• contorted
• deported
• escorted
• exhorted
• exported
• extorted
• imported
• purported