distortion

distortion — noun

1. the act of presenting facts, information, or someone's words in a way that does

1.名詞B2
釋義

the act of presenting facts, information, or someone's words in a way that does not reflect the truth, making them seem different from what was originally intended

例句

Bao accused the newspaper of a deliberate distortion of his comments on immigration.

deliberate distortion — adjective + noun collocation

The historian warned that the film contained several distortions of the events of 1945.

同義詞
  • misrepresentation

    more formal, often used in legal or journalistic contexts

  • twisting

    more informal, suggests the meaning was bent on purpose

  • falsification

    stronger and more formal, implies deliberate and dishonest alteration

反義詞
  • accuracy

    the quality of being correct and true

  • truth

    what really happened or was actually said

文法句型

distortion of [something]

用法筆記

Can be used for both deliberate lies and honest mistakes — the key point is that the result does not match the truth, regardless of intention.

常見錯誤

❌The newspaper made a distortion about the politician.
✅The newspaper gave a distorted account of the politician's speech.
💡Distortion is usually followed by 'of' to say what was changed, not 'about' to introduce a topic.
❌The article was a distraction of the truth.
✅The article was a distortion of the truth.
💡Distraction means something that takes attention away; distortion means something that changes the meaning.

2. a situation where an object, picture, or body part gets bent, stretched, or pres

2.名詞B2
釋義

a situation where an object, picture, or body part gets bent, stretched, or pressed out of its usual form, so that its original appearance is lost

例句

The old carnival mirror produced a funny distortion of Rodrigo's face.

Prolonged heat can cause a permanent distortion in the plastic window frame.

permanent distortion — adjective + noun collocation

同義詞
  • warping

    suggests bending caused by heat or pressure

  • bending

    less extreme, a gentler change in shape

  • deformation

    more technical, often used in engineering or science

反義詞
  • symmetry

    balanced and regular proportions

文法句型

distortion of [something]

distortion in [something]

用法筆記

Frequently used with 'lens' and 'image' in photography and optics. For physical objects, the adjective 'distorted' is often more natural than the noun form when describing the resulting state.

常見錯誤

❌The plastic bottle has a distortion after being in the sun.
✅The plastic bottle became distorted after being in the sun.
💡For physical objects that have changed shape, the adjective 'distorted' or verb 'became distorted' is more natural than using the noun 'distortion'.

3. unwanted changes in an audio or electronic signal that make the sound come out u

3.名詞C1
釋義

unwanted changes in an audio or electronic signal that make the sound come out unclear, harsh, or different from the original recording

例句

When Piotr turned the volume up too high, a buzzing distortion came through the speakers.

High-end audio equipment is designed to minimize signal distortion during playback.

signal distortion — compound noun in audio engineering

同義詞
  • interference

    broader term that includes static, crackling, and other signal disruptions

  • static

    specific type of crackling interference, not the same as waveform distortion

反義詞
  • clarity

    the quality of sound being clear and easy to hear

  • fidelity

    the accuracy with which sound is reproduced

文法句型

audio distortion

signal distortion

用法筆記

Can describe both unwanted technical flaws (bad cables, low-quality equipment) and a creative musical effect deliberately added by musicians, especially in rock and electronic genres.

常見錯誤

❌There is too much noise in the recording.' (when the problem is sound quality)
✅There is too much distortion in the recording.
💡Noise means unwanted background sounds (hiss, traffic); distortion means the original signal itself is changed and unclear.