defy
Americanverb (used with object)
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to challenge the power of; resist boldly or openly.
Love drives the characters to ignore their family feud and defy parental authority.
The artist defies conventional categories by blending very different styles in her work.
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to offer effective resistance to; make virtually impossible.
Their strategic position is helped by having a fort that defies attack.
The facts were so complex that they defied simple explanation.
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to challenge (a person) to do something deemed impossible.
They defied him to dive off the bridge.
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Archaic. to challenge to a combat or contest.
noun
plural
defiesverb
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to resist (a powerful person, authority, etc) openly and boldly
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to elude, esp in a baffling way
his actions defy explanation
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formal to challenge or provoke (someone to do something judged to be impossible); dare
I defy you to climb that cliff
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archaic to invite to do battle or combat
Other Word Forms
- defiable adjective
- defier noun
- defyingly adverb
- predefy verb (used with object)
- redefy verb (used with object)
- undefiable adjective
- undefiably adverb
Etymology
Origin of defy
First recorded in 1250–1300; from Middle English defien, Old French desfier, from des- dis- 1 + fier “to trust” (from Vulgar Latin fīdāre (unrecorded), from Latin fīdere; fidelity ( def. ) )
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.
The Conference Board’s economic sentiment index rose to 91.8 in March, defying analyst expectations of a decline amid the Iran war.
Their ability to enact change depended on their willingness to defy current custom and mores.
From Salon
Russians are still defying the blockade, always adept at finding new ways to access our journalism.
From BBC
The current race similarly features a political heavyweight, a wealthy businessman with a substantial advertising presence, and underdog candidates defying expectations about their viability.
From Los Angeles Times
But the company has managed to defy the doubters, with profit quadrupling and revenue nearly tripling last year.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
