Meaning & use

defiance

noun·Academic

Open resistance or bold refusal to obey a person, rule, or authority.

See it in a sentence

In an act of defiance, the workers refused to leave the factory floor.

The teenager's defiance frustrated her parents throughout the difficult year.

A note on using this word

Often used in the phrase "in defiance of," meaning despite or against something.

Words with a similar meaning

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Words with an opposite meaning

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