nonconformity

[ non-kuhn-fawr-mi-tee ]

noun

1. failure or refusal to conform, as with established customs, attitudes, or ideas.
2. lack of conformity or agreement.
3. (often initial capital letter) refusal to conform to the Church of England.
4. Geology. an unconformity that separates crystalline rocks, either igneous or metamorphic, from sedimentary rocks.

nonconformity

/ ˌnɒnkənˈfɔːmɪtɪ /

noun

1. failure or refusal to conform
2. absence of agreement or harmony

Word History and Origins

Origin of nonconformity¹

First recorded in 1610–20; non- + conformity

Example Sentences

Ketchum has some constituents who have either never met a transgender person before — or the idea of gender nonconformity makes them uncomfortable.

From Seattle Times

The filmmakers were aiming to call out the guardians of rigidity who see nonconformity as arrogance, regardless of whether it is or not.

From New York Times

The regulations wrestle with this, finding that “harassing a student — including acts of verbal, nonverbal, or physical aggression, intimidation, or hostility based on the student’s nonconformity with stereotypical notions of masculinity and femininity or gender identity — can constitute discrimination on the basis of sex under Title IX in certain circumstances.”

From Seattle Times

But she stood apart in her adamant nonconformity.

From New York Times

For the target, as “Fellow Travelers” intuits, isn’t queerness, or racial equality, or anti-capitalism per se, but nonconformity of any sort, which power seeks to stamp out for its own preservation.

From Los Angeles Times