I. ˈdēvēˌāt, usu -ād.+V verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Late Latin deviatus, past participle of deviare, from Latin de from, away + Late Latin -viare (from Latin via way, road) — more at de- , via
intransitive verb
: to diverge or turn aside : veer especially from an established way or toward a new direction
he deviated from the path
deviating to the south
: stray especially from a standard, principle, or topic
she never deviated from her first account
deviating sharply from the traditional approach
: turn aside from a previous, usual, normal, or acceptable course (as of conduct)
party principles permit no one to deviate
whenever I deviated I felt guilty
transitive verb
: to turn (something) out of a previous course : cause to deviate
he would deviate rivers, turn the scorched plains of Lombardy into fertile pastures — F.M.Godfrey
a deep iron keel will tend to deviate the compass during heeling over
Synonyms: see swerve
II. -vēə̇]t, -ēˌā], usu ]d.+V noun
( -s )
Etymology: Late Latin deviatus, past participle of deviare
: something that differs noticeably from the average or normal range of its kind: as
a. : a person that is a deviant ; especially : sexual pervert
b. : any item of a statistical distribution that differs significantly from the norm
III. adjective
also de·vi·at·ed -ēˌād.ə̇d, -ātə̇d\
Etymology: deviate from Late Latin deviatus; deviated from Late Latin deviat us + English -ed
: characterized by or given to significant departure from the behavioral norms of a particular society