Perversity Meaning
/pə(ɹ)ˈvɜː(ɹ)sɪti/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounThe quality of being perverse.
nounSomething which is perverse.
Sentence Examples
The perversity of human nature was a theme.
The perversity of the situation was frustrating.
She did it out of sheer perversity to annoy him.
CEFR Practice Quiz
His ____ made him do the exact opposite of what he was told.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
His ____ in always choosing the most difficult path frustrated everyone who tried to help him.
Word Origin & History
From perverse + -ity, from Middle French perversité, from Latin perversitās.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Hey kids, the word of the week is "pupaphobia"! Others may enjoy being frightened by chainsaw-wielding maniacs and cannibal clowns, but my Halloween is never complete without a murderous Muppet or two. Thankfully, a pair of events last Friday the 13th provided a perfect double feature of puppet perversity."
— 2017 October 18, Seth Kubersky, “A weekend full of puppetry-themed entertainment is just the ticket, unless you’re pupaphobic”, in Orlando Weekly:
"More generally, for the ULD property to hold, the substitution effects (which are always well behaved) must be large enough to overcome possible “perversities” coming from the wealth effects."
— 1995, Andreu Mas-Colell, Michael D. Whinston, and Jerry R. Green, Microeconomic Theory, Oxford University Press, page 112:
"“Of all this world's perversities, there is only one I cannot abide: the kink-shame. I'm off!” “You can't walk out! I'm walking out!”"
— 2025 May 11, Monica Padrick, “Don Tyxote” (11:26 from the start), in Krapopolis, season 2, episode 21, spoken by Shlub (Matt Berry):
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
His ____ made him do the exact opposite of what he was told.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
His ____ in always choosing the most difficult path frustrated everyone who tried to help him.