INDEX:
1. conventional
2. unconventional
RELATED WORDS
see also
↑ NORMAL/ORDINARY
↑ TRADITION
↑ OLD-FASHIONED
↑ CRAZY
↑ STRANGE
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1. conventional
▷ conventional /kənˈvenʃ ə nəl/ [adjective]
conventional people, behaviour, and opinions are the type that most people in society think are normal and socially acceptable, although some people think they are boring and old-fashioned :
▪ Rosemary led a quiet, conventional life until she went to college.
▪ Her outrageous stage act is seen as a challenge to conventional morality.
▪ Acupuncture may work, but I still believe in a more conventional approach to medicine.
conventionally [adverb]
▪ She was dressed very conventionally in a dull grey suit.
▪ Dickinson was very spiritual but not conventionally religious.
▷ conformist /kənˈfɔːʳmɪst, kənˈfɔːʳməst/ [adjective]
thinking and behaving like everyone else, because you do not want to be different :
▪ Your problem is that you are too conformist in your thinking.
▪ Our children’s creativity is being beaten down by the conformist educational system.
conformist [countable noun]
▪ He’d never dream of trying something like that - he’s too much of a conformist.
conformity [uncountable noun]
▪ The system seems to value conformity over originality.
▷ straight /streɪt/ [adjective not usually before noun] informal
conventional and often fairly boring :
▪ Paul’s quite nice but he’s awfully straight.
▪ I can’t stand it when your friends come to visit - they’re so straight.
▷ conservative /kənˈsɜːʳvətɪv/ [adjective]
a conservative person is fairly old-fashioned in their attitudes, beliefs, styles of clothes etc, and does not like change or new ideas. Old-fashioned attitudes, beliefs, styles etc can also be called conservative :
▪ June’s parents were very conservative and wouldn’t allow her to date till she was 18.
▪ middle-aged men in conservative business suits
conservatively [adverb]
▪ She was in her mid-thirties, attractive, and conservatively dressed.
▷ suburban /səˈbɜːʳbən/ [adjective] especially British
typical of the attitudes and way of life of people who are conventional and ordinary, and who disapprove of anyone who does not live or behave like them :
▪ She hated her parents’ suburban attitudes.
▪ Despite her suburban clothes and appearance she was popular at college.
▷ traditional /trəˈdɪʃ ə nəl/ [adjective]
doing things in a way that have existed for a long time, and not interested in anything new or different :
▪ Many traditional teachers still think of computers as useless toys.
▪ His critics objected to the way he broke many of the traditional rules of art.
2. unconventional
▷ unconventional /ˌʌnkənˈvenʃ ə nəl◂/ [adjective]
very different from the way people usually behave, think, dress etc :
▪ His business methods were unconventional but successful.
▪ Her unconventional opinions finally cost her her job.
▪ The two never lived in the same house, but their unconventional marriage lasted over 30 years.
▷ alternative /ɔːlˈtɜːʳnətɪv/ [adjective only before noun]
alternative methods, ideas, ways of living etc are completely different from the ones that most people think are normal, and are based on different principles :
alternative medicine/lifestyle/music etc
▪ Alternative medicine can cure many problems but not diseases like cancer.
▪ San Francisco has a long history of accepting the city’s many alternative lifestyles.
▷ unorthodox /ʌnˈɔːʳθədɒksǁ-dɑːks/ [adjective]
ideas, behaviour, or methods that are unorthodox are original and different from what is usual or the accepted principles of a profession, religion etc :
▪ There was no tolerance of unorthodox political views.
▪ Treating the disease with a diet rather than with medicine is an unorthodox approach that few doctors recommend.
▷ nonconformist /ˌnɒnkənˈfɔːʳmɪst◂, ˌnɒnkənˈfɔːʳməst◂ǁˌnɑːn-/ [adjective]
not wanting to think or behave in the same way as most ordinary people, or to follow accepted ways of doing things :
▪ As a writer he remained nonconformist all his life, always searching for new means of expression.
nonconformist [countable noun]
▪ She prided herself on being a nonconformist, on getting results by breaking the rules.
▷ drop out /ˌdrɒp ˈaʊtǁˌdrɑːp-/ [intransitive phrasal verb]
to decide not to work or take part in normal society because you want to be different and live life your own way :
▪ He advised young people to ‘turn on, tune in, and drop out’.
drop out of
▪ She decided to drop out of the rat race because she couldn’t stand working 60 hours a week.
dropout/drop-out /ˈdrɒpaʊtǁˈdrɑːp-/ [countable noun]
▪ He was a dropout and a hippy back in the '60s.