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
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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
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Example Sentences
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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
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Turkish authorities have fired and arrested tens of thousands of people in the wake of a 2016 coup attempt by a Turkish military faction allegedly linked to the movement of dissident religious leader Fethullah Gulen.—
Josh Hammer,
Newsweek,
19 Mar. 2025
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In 2018, dissident Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi was murdered and dismembered.—
Ned Temko,
The Christian Science Monitor,
13 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Further reading: Trump wants to end this GOP maverick’s political career.—
Emily Brooks,
The Hill,
13 Mar. 2025
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Since the Second World War, the United States has exercised de-facto military control over Greenland, thanks to the maverick diplomat Henrik Kauffmann, who, as Denmark’s envoy to Washington in 1941, granted the U.S. control over its security.—
Louise Bokkenheuser,
The New Yorker,
11 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
The Court divided 5-4 in the case, with the dissenters including Justices Roberts, Thomas, and Alito.—
The Editors,
National Review,
17 Mar. 2025
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The lone pair of dissenters in the 5-2 vote were Aguilar and Azevedo.—
Chase Hunter,
The Mercury News,
23 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Sequences like the ambulance chase recall the heyday of Jerry Bruckheimer and Joel Silver movies, which Berk and Olsen tried to emulate while putting their own spin on the genre via the film’s unconventional protagonist.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
13 Mar. 2025
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His unconventional style and ventures (e.g., X Corp, SpaceX) and track record of turning ambitious ideas into reality is remarkable.—
Michael Khouw,
CNBC,
13 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Some have held him up as a renegade, choosing freedom over the comforts of domestic life.—
Rick Rojas,
New York Times,
17 Feb. 2025
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To someone, the renegade and pop-culture memes might be worth a few months’ rent.—
Hank Sanders,
New York Times,
24 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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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
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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
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Rachel does a great job conveying such collective endeavors and group dreaming, the whole circumference of people who support bands: friends of friends, drop-of-a-hat designers, stopgap agents, stall owners, dealers, grandparents with record collections, eccentrics without portfolios.—
Ian Penman,
Harper's Magazine,
19 Feb. 2025
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Would love to know what these career eccentrics make of the pomp and pageantry of the Grammys.—
August Brown,
Los Angeles Times,
3 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nonconformist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nonconformist. Accessed 25 Mar. 2025.
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