perverting

verb

present participle of pervert
1
as in distorting
to change so much as to create a wrong impression or alter the meaning of that summary really perverts the other candidate's views on taxes

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2
as in corrupting
to lower in character, dignity, or quality a movie that perverted the Bible story by reveling in the sinners' lewd behavior until just before the moment of divine retribution

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in abusing
to put to a bad or improper use accused of perverting the Internal Revenue Service by using it to harass political opponents

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of perverting The trial collapsed after the journalist was found to have tampered with evidence (he was later convicted of perverting the course of justice). — K.j. Yossman, Variety, 23 June 2026 He was also found guilty of perverting the court of justice. — Stylecaster Editors, StyleCaster, 27 Mar. 2026 The brand, which was based on changing the status quo and perverting common ideas, was a success and Babenzien learned how to build a business. — Jean E. Palmieri, Footwear News, 27 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for perverting
  1. distorting
  2. corrupting
  3. abusing
  4. misrepresenting
  5. subverting
  6. misusing
  7. degrading
  8. weakening
Verb
  • But the current state of geopolitics appears to be distorting what being open means.
    — Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 19 Aug. 2026
  • China’s aircraft engineers have warned that artificial intelligence could feed false data into military intelligence, potentially distorting the design and operation of advanced weapons.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of distorting
Verb
  • The Apology is Plato’s version of the speech of self-defense Socrates gives when he is tried by the city of Athens for corrupting the youth and not believing in the gods.
    — Agnes Callard, The New York Review of Books, 18 Aug. 2026
  • The judge also said that Nine PBS must find a third party, such as a former OSS worker, who can help retrieve the data within 30 days and without sharing or corrupting data belonging to other OSS clients.
    — Scharon Harding, ArsTechnica, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of corrupting
Verb
  • Communities from Lansing, Michigan, to Pflugerville, Texas, are ending their relationship with Flock, largely over concerns regarding out-of-control surveillance, unwanted data sharing, high expenses, and reports of police abusing the tool.
    — Cyrus Farivar, ArsTechnica, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Countless cops, meanwhile, are abusing the cameras to stalk women.
    — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of abusing
Verb
  • Bonta, in a statement, accused Paramount of leaking and misrepresenting information the two sides had discussed during a preliminary session Friday.
    — Meg James, Los Angeles Times, 24 Aug. 2026
  • The two sides had been due to meet Monday for preliminary discussions for a possible settlement, but Bonta called off the meeting late Sunday, after accusing Paramount of misrepresenting details of an earlier meeting held on Friday.
    — Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of misrepresenting
Verb
  • The show also pokes fun at the late 1990s and early 2000s liberal cultural consensus that was upheld in other popular culture of the time while also both replicating and subverting stereotypes of suburban Southern white Americans.
    — Jordana Rosenfeld, Encyclopedia Britannica, 24 Aug. 2026
  • The state alleges OpenAI's rapid success stems from deceit and exploitation, causing widespread harm to Floridians and subverting public order.
    — Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of subverting
Verb
  • The Washington Post and other news outlets have recently reported on incidents of individual police officers misusing information collected by license plate readers for personal reasons, such as tracking the movements of former romantic partners.
    — Joseph Flaherty, Arkansas Online, 28 Aug. 2026
  • She was arrested two days later on charges of misusing a license plate reader system.
    — Kenny Jacoby, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of misusing
Verb
  • For instance, excess ions fail to enter the graphite quickly enough and form performance-degrading metallic deposits on the surface (lithium plating).
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 24 Aug. 2026
  • The Tate brothers built a global following, became extremely wealthy, and gained cultural and political influence by degrading and harming women.
    — Jodi Bondi Norgaard, Chicago Tribune, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of degrading
Verb
  • Throughout this year, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has been weakening the Navy’s leadership by blocking the promotion of nearly 20 admirals.
    — Andrea N. Goldstein, The Atlantic, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Wheat futures hit their highest level in more than three years as the war in Ukraine strained supplies, further weakening the global food system.
    — Jeronimo Gonzalez, semafor.com, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of weakening

Browse Nearby Words

perverters
perverting
perverts
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Cite this Entry

“Perverting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/perverting. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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