defect (from)

verb

di-ˈfekt How to pronounce defect (from) (audio)
Definition of defect (from)next
as in to desert
to leave (a cause or party) often in order to take up another soldiers defected from the rebel army en masse as the failure of their cause became apparent

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for defect (from)
  1. desert
  2. abandon
  3. reject
  4. cut off
Verb
  • Some of the islands are deserted; some have glorious white beaches, and some active volcanoes.
    Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 14 Dec. 2024
  • Prosecutors initiated 60,000 cases against soldiers who deserted their posts in 2024—almost double the number from 2022 and 2023.
    Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 13 Dec. 2024
Definition of desert
Verb
  • The Claridge Hotel’s former casino sits abandoned as well.
    Jonathan Rowe, SPIN, 18 Dec. 2024
  • If the department’s predictions are correct, the U.S. would be essentially abandoning any pretense of trying to limit climate change.
    Zoë Schlanger, The Atlantic, 18 Dec. 2024
Definition of abandon
Verb
  • The judge in that case on Monday rejected Trump’s request to toss out the convictions and indictment on a claim of presidential immunity.
    Dan Mangan, CNBC, 19 Dec. 2024
  • Government shutdown:Donald Trump rejects bipartisan plan to avoid a government shutdown, sets up debt ceiling battle When is the government shutdown deadline?
    Fernando Cervantes Jr., USA TODAY, 19 Dec. 2024
Definition of reject
Verb
  • The deal permitted it to keep doing business with Medicare, despite a law mandating that criminal pharma firms be cut off.
    Bob Fernandez, ProPublica, 17 Dec. 2024
  • Mangione had cut off contact with family and friends for six months prior to the killing, and his mother filed a missing person report with the San Francisco Police Department in November.
    Ben Brachfeld, People.com, 17 Dec. 2024
Definition of cut off
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Thesaurus Entries Near defect (from)

defected (from)

defect (from)

defecting

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Defect (from).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defect%20%28from%29. Accessed 30 Dec. 2024.

Copy Citation

Share

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See All

Point of View: It's Personal

Plural and Possessive Names: A Guide

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Words You Always Have to Look Up
See All

Popular in Wordplay

See All

8 Words with Fascinating Histories

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

Birds Say the Darndest Things

10 Words from Taylor Swift Songs (Merriam's Version)

10 Scrabble Words Without Any Vowels
See All

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
naughty or nice
Are you naughty or nice? Quiz He's making a quiz, and checking it twice...