distorted; distorting; distorts
1
: to twist (see twist entry 1 sense 3b) out of the true meaning or proportion : to alter to give a false or unnatural picture or account
distorted the facts
2
: to twist out of a natural, normal, or original shape or condition
a face distorted by pain
also
: to cause to be perceived unnaturally
the new lights distorted colors
The singer's voice was electronically distorted.
3
: pervert
distort justice
: to become distorted
Heat caused the wax figures to distort.
also
: to cause a twisting from the true, natural, or normal
distorter
noun
Examples of distort in a Sentence
Her face was distorted by pain.
The odd camera angle distorted her figure in the photograph.
The sound of the guitar was distorted.
Heat caused the plastic to distort.
She felt he was distorting the facts.
The story was distorted by the press.
The loss of both her parents at an early age distorted her outlook on life.
Recent Examples on the Web
Scans revealed the magnets had clustered into four chains in the lower-right side of his abdomen, pulling together different sections of his bowel with their magnetic force, the report said, noting some imagery was distorted by the magnets.
—
Hanna Park, CNN Money, 27 Oct. 2025
This dynamic suppresses wages and distorts labor competition.
—Billal Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Oct. 2025
Expecting others to adapt to us is a selfish gesture that distorts the spirit of travel.
—Wilson Santiago Burgos, USA Today, 26 Oct. 2025
While asteroid strikes can occur anywhere on Earth, many ancient craters have been distorted, eroded, or buried over time due to tectonic shifts and surface weathering.
—Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 25 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distort
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Hanna Park, CNN Money, 27 Oct. 2025
This dynamic suppresses wages and distorts labor competition.
—Billal Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Oct. 2025
Expecting others to adapt to us is a selfish gesture that distorts the spirit of travel.
—Wilson Santiago Burgos, USA Today, 26 Oct. 2025
While asteroid strikes can occur anywhere on Earth, many ancient craters have been distorted, eroded, or buried over time due to tectonic shifts and surface weathering.
—Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 25 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distort
Cite this Entry
“Distort.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/distort. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
distort
verb
dis·tort
dis-ˈtȯ(ə)rt 
1
: to tell in a way that is misleading : misrepresent
distorted the facts
2
: to twist out of a natural, normal, or original shape or condition
distorter
noun
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