deviate
deviate Lexical Profile
deviate Game Scores & Validity
• verb
To depart from an established course, plan, standard, or norm.
"The airline pilot had to deviate from the scheduled flight path to avoid a severe thunderstorm."
To cause something, such as a light ray or compass needle, to turn aside from a straight course; to deflect.
"A glass prism can deviate a beam of white light and separate it into its constituent spectral colors."
• adjective
Departing from an established norm, standard, or accepted course; deviant.
"The psychologist studied how deviate behavior is defined across different cultural frameworks."
• noun
A person or thing that departs markedly from accepted social norms or standards; a deviant.
"In mid-century sociological literature, someone who rejected social conventions was often labeled a social deviate."
In statistics, the numerical difference between a random variable and a fixed reference value, typically the mean.
"To normalize the dataset, the analyst calculated the standard normal deviate for each observation."
Word Nuance & Usage
While 'deviate' is most commonly used as a verb (pronounced /ˈdiːvieɪt/), its noun and adjective senses (pronounced /ˈdiːviət/) are largely superseded in modern standard usage by 'deviant', which carries strong pejorative connotations when referring to people.
• Rhymes for deviate
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the late 15th century from Late Latin deviatus, past participle of deviare ('to turn out of the way'), formed from de- ('from, away') and via ('way, road').