defector
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of defector
1655–65; < Latin dēfector renegade, rebel, equivalent to dēfec- (variant stem of dēficere to become disaffected, revolt, literally, to fail; see defect) + -tor -tor
Explanation
A person who quits something, despite a perceived duty or obligation, is a defector. If you abandon the Boston Red Sox to root for the New York Yankees instead, your fellow Bostonians will consider you a defector. In politics, defectors abandon their home countries and claim allegiance to another. A person can only be a defector if the first state forbids such a change and considers it illegal or illegitimate, as the government of North Korea does when one of its citizens leaves the country. Abandoning a military post also makes someone a defector. In your life, you're more likely to be considered a defector (by some) if you change political parties or stop being a vegetarian.
Vocabulary lists containing defector
Selection Vocabulary 1, Unit 6
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocabulary for July 15–July 21, 2023
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocabulary for June 17–June 23, 2023
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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.
Mr. Magyar, a defector from Fidesz, campaigned hard on the economy, which grew a mere 0.4% in 2025.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 12, 2026
During the interview, the pair also pleaded to be sent to the South, according to GNU chief Jang Se-yul, himself a North Korean defector who fled the isolated country in the 2000s.
From Barron's • Dec. 24, 2025
The BBC also spoke to a different defector, Hyun-Seung Lee, who met North Koreans working in IT while he was travelling as a businessman for the regime in China.
From BBC • Aug. 1, 2025
Dick’s characters appear and disappear amid a nearly incomprehensible plot about a Nazi defector who tries to warn the Japanese of an impending German attack.
From Salon • May 17, 2025
Ames had arrived late and seemed nervous about meeting the first major Soviet defector of his career.
From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau
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.
