defunct

adjective

de·​funct di-ˈfəŋkt 

dē-

: no longer living, existing, or functioning

wrote for a magazine that is now defunct

a defunct railroad

Did you know?

If you know that de- often means "the opposite of", it's easy to guess the meaning of defunct. Shakespeare seems to have been the first writer to use this adjective, in Henry V. Defunct American political parties include the Greenback Party, the Readjuster Party, and the Nullifier Party. Defunct Academy Awards categories include Best Dance Direction and Best Assistant Director. Defunct U.S. auto models include the Dudly Bug, the LuLu, the Hupmobile, the Gas-au-lec, and the Nu-Klea Starlite. But to speak of a person as defunct would sound disrespectful—which is how it sounds in e. e. cummings's famous poem "Buffalo Bill's defunct".

Synonyms

• extinct
• vanished
• expired
• gone

Choose the Right Synonym for defunct

dead, defunct, deceased, departed, late mean devoid of life.

dead applies literally to what is deprived of vital force but is used figuratively of anything that has lost any attribute (such as energy, activity, radiance) suggesting life.

a dead, listless performance

defunct stresses cessation of active existence or operation.

a defunct television series

deceased, departed, and late apply to persons who have died recently.

deceased is the preferred term in legal use.

the estate of the deceased

departed is used usually as a euphemism.

our departed sister

late is used especially with reference to a person in a specific relation or status.

the company's late president

Examples of defunct in a Sentence

She wrote for the now-defunct newspaper.

a stack of brochures and a few faded placards are all that remain of the defunct organization

Recent Examples on the Web

In a filing on Friday, the nearly-defunct federal body sought summary judgment in NPR’s lawsuit against the organization over its decision to appropriate funding for satellite distribution to a select group of NPR member stations before the CPB ceases operations. —Max Tani, semafor.com, 27 Oct. 2025

In recent years, there's been a big push to reduce space debris by setting up tracking systems, improving spacecraft and launcher designs, and setting up protocols so that defunct satellites are properly decommissioned before being orbited or sent into a graveyard orbit. —David Szondy october 26, New Atlas, 26 Oct. 2025

The detention of the founder of the now-defunct pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily has become the most high-profile example of China's crackdown on rights in Hong Kong. —Xinghui Kok, USA Today, 26 Oct. 2025

Mellon’s fortune Mellon founded the now-defunct railroad company Guilford Transportation Industries in 1981, but much of his wealth is from his grandfather, Andrew, who was Treasury secretary from 1921 to 1932. —Nino Paoli, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin defunctus, from past participle of defungi to finish, die, from de- + fungi to perform — more at function

First Known Use

1599, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for defunct

• adjunct
• debunked
• disjunct
• flunked
• junked
• plunked
• trunked

Kids Definition

defunct

adjective

de·​funct di-ˈfəŋ(k)t 

: having finished the course of life or existence : dead, extinct

a defunct organization