perverse

[ per-vurs ]
/ pərˈvɜrs /

adjective

willfully determined or disposed to go counter to what is expected or desired; contrary.
characterized by or proceeding from such a determination or disposition: a perverse mood.
wayward or cantankerous.
persistent or obstinate in what is wrong.
turned away from or rejecting what is right, good, or proper; wicked or corrupt.

Origin of perverse

1325–75; Middle English < Latin perversus facing the wrong way, askew, orig. past participle of pervertere. See pervert

OTHER WORDS FROM perverse

Example sentences from the Web for perverseness

  • Perverseness in this error hath brought the church to the misery which it endureth.

  • Perverseness prompted Theodora to say, 'The baby at the lodge is twice the size.'

    Heartsease |Charlotte M. Yonge
  • And then came, as if to my final and irrevocable overthrow, the spirit of Perverseness.

British Dictionary definitions for perverseness

perverse
/ (pəˈvɜːs) /

adjective

deliberately deviating from what is regarded as normal, good, or proper
persistently holding to what is wrong
wayward or contrary; obstinate; cantankerous
archaic perverted

Derived forms of perverse

perversely, adverb perverseness, noun

Word Origin for perverse

C14: from Old French pervers, from Latin perversus turned the wrong way