defected
Americanadjective
-
having deserted a country, cause, etc., especially in order to adopt another.
In the movie White Nights, a defected Soviet dancer is returned to his motherland when the plane he’s on is forced to land in Russia.
verb
Etymology
Origin of defected
First recorded in 1585–95; defect + -ed 2 ( def. ) for the adjective senses; defect + -ed 1 ( def. ) for the verb sense
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.
A managing director in Blue Owl’s Tokyo office defected to Benefit Street Partners, while a managing director in institutional funds went to Pimco and a principal in the private-wealth unit took a job at KKR.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2026
Laura Anne Jones is a former Conservative who defected to Reform in the summer of 2025.
From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026
Sarah Cooper-Lesadd, one of 34 Reform MSs elected in May's Senedd election, defected to Plaid on Tuesday.
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026
Kendall had been a key backer of Democrat Andrew Jackson in the 1828 election, having defected from Henry Clay’s Whigs.
From Slate ● Sep. 4, 2026
My mother embraced Edward after he defected from Dauntless.
From "Allegiant" by Veronica Roth
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