Meaning & use
defy
To openly resist or refuse to obey a person, rule, or authority.
See it in a sentence
The workers defied the company's order and continued their strike.
Her recovery seemed to defy everything the doctors had predicted.
A note on using this word
Defy is often used with abstract subjects as well as people, as in "defy expectations" or "defy explanation," meaning to resist being understood or predicted.
Words with a similar meaning
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Words with an opposite meaning
Make it your own
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