as in dissident
deviating from commonly accepted beliefs or practices
a cattle-ranching family that took some time in getting used to their daughter's nonconformist adoption of vegetarianism
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in maverick
a person who does not conform to generally accepted standards or customs
always the nonconformist, she insisted on wearing red on St. Patrick's Day and not green like everyone else
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in dissenter
a person who believes, teaches, or advocates something opposed to accepted beliefs
a nonconformist who was excommunicated from her church for her teachings
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 nonconformist
Charlie Tyson, The Atlantic, 18 Oct. 2022
Ye, however, was widely known to be both a perfectionist and a nonconformist.
—New York Times, 25 July 2022
Fedoras, trilbys and Panamas seem to proclaim the wearer as either an extravagant nonconformist or an anti-feminist reactionary.
—New York Times, 15 July 2022
The Return of Tanya Tucker is a fittingly unconventional portrait of a nonconformist.
—Sheri Linden, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Mar. 2022
See All Example Sentences for nonconformist
Noun
In her breakthrough piece, Heretic, Graham is dressed in white and rebuffed and rebuked by a group of 12 women dressed in black: the punishment of the nonconformist.
—Charlie Tyson, The Atlantic, 18 Oct. 2022
Ye, however, was widely known to be both a perfectionist and a nonconformist.
—New York Times, 25 July 2022
Fedoras, trilbys and Panamas seem to proclaim the wearer as either an extravagant nonconformist or an anti-feminist reactionary.
—New York Times, 15 July 2022
The Return of Tanya Tucker is a fittingly unconventional portrait of a nonconformist.
—Sheri Linden, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Mar. 2022
See All Example Sentences for nonconformist
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nonconformist
Adjective
-
Eduard Limonov then—an appropriate nom de plume for a dissident poet arriving in 1974 New York, a metropolis of graffiti and project fires, of blackouts and serial killers.—
Ed Simon
June 23,
Literary Hub,
23 June 2025
-
Jafar Panahi — the Iranian dissident filmmaker who has been arrested, jailed, and banned from filmmaking numerous times in his home country due to his powerful and provocative work — took home the top prize.—
Ryan Coleman,
EW.com,
26 May 2025
Noun
-
Alvarez has been described as a scientific Indiana Jones, but his reputation as a maverick was built on a foundation of patience and discipline.—
Alec Nevala-Lee
June 11,
Literary Hub,
11 June 2025
-
New York is once again home, but Arden is too much a maverick to fall into the establishment trap.—
Charles McNulty,
Los Angeles Times,
27 May 2025
Noun
-
Early last month, Johnson, who has cast three rare tie-breaker votes and come close to issuing the first veto in decades, likened dealing with dissenters to being at a Thanksgiving dinner, where there is sometimes disagreement on what to make.—
Jake Sheridan,
Chicago Tribune,
10 June 2025
-
Big Brother was Josef Stalin – controlling the thoughts of his people, punishing dissenters.—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
17 May 2025
Adjective
-
Use generative prompts during ideation to spark unconventional ideas that can act as creative springboards.—
Anusha Nerella,
Forbes.com,
17 June 2025
-
Palmeiras have a very attractive style of football, and Porto did some impressive, and in places unconventional, defending.—
Adam Crafton,
New York Times,
15 June 2025
Noun
-
And, of course, my fantasy went right to some kind of renegade character along the lines of Saw Gerrera.—
Dalton Ross,
EW.com,
16 May 2025
-
The director Doris Wishman was a renegade: a woman who made lurid exploitation films at a time when American underground cinema was a man’s playground.—
Erik Piepenburg,
New York Times,
2 June 2025
Adjective
-
In the dissenting view, the star collapses to the edge of the event horizon and then hovers there, or rebounds and explodes.—
Corey S. Powell,
Discover Magazine,
26 Feb. 2015
-
The document runs to more than a hundred and fifty pages, and for each question there are affirmative and dissenting studies, as well as some that indicate mixed results.—
The New Yorker,
The New Yorker,
3 June 2022
Noun
-
American eccentrics like Walters long have provided material for satirists across the pond.—
Chris Jones,
Chicago Tribune,
11 June 2025
-
There are dozens upon dozens of memorable eccentrics, delusional antiheroes, blustery authority figures, sad sacks, screw-ups and all-too-lovable schmucks that populate the 12 feature films and handful of shorts directed by Wes Anderson.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
28 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nonconformist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nonconformist. Accessed 29 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share