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YOUR VOCABULARY, ONE WORD AT A TIME

defiant

Adjective

IPA /dɪˈfaɪənt/

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Meaning in plain English

Openly refusing to obey someone or accept their authority.

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Pronunciation

defiant/dɪˈfaɪənt/

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  1. An instruction is given

  2. I refuse to obey!

A defiant response openly challenges an instruction or authority.

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  1. The child gave a defiant shake of the head and stayed in the tree.
  2. The student remained defiant when asked to remove the protest sign.

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The child gave a ________ shake of the head and stayed in the tree.
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defiant — Openly refusing to obey someone or accept their authority.

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Openly refusing to obey someone or accept their authority.

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Word origin

From French défiant or directly from the related noun defiance.

Did you know?

Defiant often describes an attitude, gesture, look or response.

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defiant

/dɪˈfaɪənt/ (Adjective)

“Defiant signals resistance to authority. It is stronger and more confrontational than simply confident.”

englishskillstudio.com