deviancy

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

But this specific language about "deviancy" has never appeared in warnings.

From BBC • Feb. 21, 2026

The observation eventually spawned Erikson’s first book, “Wayward Puritans,” in 1966, which argued that deviancy can serve a positive function in social groups.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 18, 2025

I think a lot about the old phrase “defining deviancy down.”

From Seattle Times • Mar. 25, 2023

Mr. Maynard, a criminology professor who specializes in deviancy, now sits in a Sacramento jail awaiting a hearing.

From New York Times • Oct. 8, 2021

We are in that sort sliding trajectory that the late Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan once described as “defining deviancy downward.”

From Salon • Aug. 1, 2017