defiance

noun

de·​fi·​ance di-ˈfī-ən(t)s 

dē-

1

: the act or an instance of defying : challenge

jailed for defiance of a court order

2

: disposition to resist : willingness to contend or fight

dealing with a child's defiance

Phrases

in defiance of

: contrary to : despite

seemingly in defiance of the laws of physics

He returned to the pulpit May 22 in defiance of an order by church leaders banning him from television preaching for one year.

—Daniel E. Kubiske

Synonyms

• balkiness
• contrariness
• contumacy
• disobedience
• frowardness
• insubordination
• intractability
• obstreperousness
• rebellion
• rebelliousness
• recalcitrance
• refractoriness
• unruliness
• waywardness
• willfulness

Examples of defiance in a Sentence

any defiance of the authoritarian regime would have dire consequences

the troubled youth seems to have an ingrained defiance to authority of any sort

Recent Examples on the Web

The dissenters—who were ordered to leave Hanover within three days—became known as the Göttingen Seven, and their act of defiance was later enshrined in German history as a banner moment in the nation’s path to democracy. —Jennifer Wilson, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2024

Their decision to kiss in front of the preachers was not just an act of defiance, but a message to the world. —David Faris, Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2024

The mugshot snapped of Trump in August 2023 after a Democratic district attorney brought unprecedented criminal charges against him in Georgia quickly became an iconic image of defiance for his supporters, for example. —Sarah Bedford, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 2 Nov. 2024

Christ stands with arms folded, eyes narrowed—a perfect image of sulking adolescent defiance. —Christian K. Kleinbub, ARTnews.com, 29 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English diffiaunce, defyaunce, borrowed from Anglo-French defiance, difiaunce, from defier, desfier "to renounce, challenge, defy entry 1" + -ance, -aunce -ance

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

defiance

noun

de·​fi·​ance di-ˈfī-ən(t)s 

1

: the act or an instance of defying : challenge

2

: a tendency to resist : contempt of opposition