defy

American  

[dih-fahy, dee-] / dɪˈfaɪ, di- /

verb (used with object)

defied, defying

1. 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.

   Synonyms:

   scorn, flout, brave, dare

2. 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.

3. to challenge (a person) to do something deemed impossible.

   They defied him to dive off the bridge.

4. Archaic. to challenge to a combat or contest.

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noun

plural

defies

1. a challenge; a defiance.

defy British  

/ dɪˈfaɪ /

verb

1. to resist (a powerful person, authority, etc) openly and boldly

2. to elude, esp in a baffling way

   his actions defy explanation

3. formal to challenge or provoke (someone to do something judged to be impossible); dare

   I defy you to climb that cliff

4. archaic to invite to do battle or combat

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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; cf. fidelity ( def. ))

Explanation

To defy is to openly refuse to do something. You can defy the no-costumes-in-class rule if you wear your fairy wings to school, but just don’t try to defy the laws of gravity unless you can actually fly. If you deliberately break a rule or ignore an order, you defy, or resist, that rule. The word defy comes from the Latin word disfidare for "renounce one's faith." So if you're expected to be faithful to a certain law or rule but you refuse to be, you defy it. There are different ways to defy — defy your parents by staying out past curfew, or defy common sense by walking in with shoes on your head.

Example Sentences

“I’m currently working on an accessible life-coaching resource in the style of an ‘80s TV show, using YouTube videos, to show others they can defy the societal norm of being miserable,” he says.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 15, 2026

Lancashire skipper James Anderson took 4-18 to help his side defy the odds and defeat Derbyshire by 29 runs on a dramatic last day of the County Championship match at Emirates Old Trafford.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2026

Any such operation, if ordered, would risk significant casualties, considering that Iran relies on drones, missiles and small speedboats to strike vessels that attempt to defy its blockade.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

And stocks continued to defy gravity following gains on Wall Street that were helped by tech giants including Apple and Amazon.

From Barron's • Mar. 18, 2026

We did, however, often defy our parents by going swimming.

From "How Dare the Sun Rise" by Sandra Uwiringiyimana

Related Words

• confront
• disregard
• elude
• flout
• ignore
• mock
• oppose
• provoke
• resist
• ridicule
• spurn
• thwart
• violate
• withstand