deform
de.form \di-'fo.(*)rm, 'de--\ vb [ME deformen, fr. MF or L; MF deformer,
fr. L deformare, fr.]de- + formare to form, fr. forma form 1: to spoil the
form of 2a: to spoil the looks of : DISFIGURE 2b: to make hideous or
monstrous 3: to alter the shape of by stress : to become misshapen or
changed in shape is the least specific of these and may imply a change of
shape through stress, injury, or some accident of growth; DISTORT and
CONTORT both imply a wrenching from the natural, normal, or justly
proportioned, but CONTORT suggests a more involved twisting and a more
grotesque and painful result; WARP indicates physically an uneven shrinking
that bends or twists out of a flat plane and suggests a bias, a wrong
slant, or an abnormal direction; GNARL suggests contortions produced by
harsh weather, heavy work, old age SYN syn DISTORT, CONTORT, WARP, GNARL:
DEFORM