DEFECT Synonyms: 63 Similar and Opposite Words

defect 1 of 2

noun

ˈdē-ˌfekt

Definition of defect

as in scar

something that spoils the appearance or completeness of a thing the statue has a slight defect on the base, so it's being sold at a discount

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

defect

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Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of defect

Noun

The baby boy involved in a multistate surrogacy battle over his life-threatening heart defect had emergency surgery Monday, days after he was born in a Texas hospital. — Emily Hallas, The Washington Examiner, 18 Aug. 2026 If a system has defects or major cost overruns, procurement staffers, their bosses, and their bosses’ bosses face congressional inquiries and outside investigations. — Doug Beck, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026

Verb

Accounts of athletes defecting and seeking asylum date back to at least 1982, with the undercurrent of international events often framing such high-profile moments. — Tamara Davison, Wired News, 17 June 2026 Still, there are many people that will vote on election day, some of whom were already going to vote for Mills, and some who could defect to her as a protest. — Margie Cullen, USA Today, 8 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for defect

Recent Examples of Synonyms for defect

Noun

As the tree grew, the metal bands cut into the trunk and branches, in some places disappearing beneath a scar-like covering of bark.

— ABC News, ABC News, 24 Aug. 2026
Nineteen months after the Palisades Fire leveled much of the seaside community, scars of the blaze are increasingly overshadowed by signs of progress.

— N. Kirkpatrick, Washington Post, 23 Aug. 2026

Definition of scar

Verb

The book follows the intertwining stories of two families, the Hamiltons (who emigrate from Ireland to Steinbeck’s beloved Salinas Valley) and the Trasks (who move to California from the East Coast), over the course of several generations.

— Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 18 Aug. 2026
Born in Kosovo, Morina emigrated with his family to Germany in the 1990s, before the war that would ultimately lead to the country’s independence.

— Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 16 Aug. 2026

Definition of emigrate

Noun

Deadly fires, often linked to electrical faults or gas cylinder explosions, are common in India where investigators have frequently pointed to safety lapses and inadequate enforcement of fire regulations as contributing to recurring loss of life.

— ABC News, ABC News, 19 Aug. 2026
If Russia behaved badly, that was the fault of its primitive and cruel Asian side, a notion that conveniently created the fiction that Western countries are not capable of similar cruelty.

— Foreign Affairs, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of fault

Verb

However, when her island's resources are threatened, Moana embraces her ancestors' voyaging heritage and heads out to sea to find Maui, deliver the heart of Te Fiti (which Maui stole back in the day) and save her people.

— Brian Truitt, USA Today, 9 July 2026
When a blight hits the island, the result of a curse that began when Maui stole a gem representing the heart of the goddess Te Fiti, Moana gets her quest and excuse to voyage — to find the missing Maui and force him to return the stone.

— Alison Willmore, Vulture, 8 July 2026

Definition of voyage

Noun

For example, patients with bunion deformities may not be able to tolerate their hallux being forced in a straighter position.

— Karla Rodriguez, Footwear News, 24 Aug. 2026
Fetuses of mice suddenly exposed to QACs developed deformities and neural tube defects similar to spina bifida in humans.

— Sandee LaMotte, CNN Money, 11 Aug. 2026

Definition of deformity

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defected

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“Defect.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defect. Accessed 26 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of defect

noun

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Synonyms of defect

noun

verb

Example Sentences

Phrases Containing defect

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on defect

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

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