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

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for defect (from)
Verb
  • In the process, the room itself is illuminated, revealing a workshop deserted in a hurry by its artisans, clay, sawdust, fabric, paper, and paint scattered across the atelier workbenches.
    Liam Hess, Vogue, 9 Sep. 2026
  • When Jacquie Navratil rolls up to Angel City Lumber in an all-but-deserted stretch of industrial Boyle Heights on a summer Sunday, her white Dodge Caravan SE loaded with cat-trapping gear, she’s been in cat rescue mode for hours.
    Adam Tschorn, Los Angeles Times, 8 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • The poem is about this tendency toward earth, the temptation—the closest thing to bliss in these poems—to abandon yourself to the funk of the soil and the heat of the sun.
    Max Norman, Harpers Magazine, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Hnin Aye abandoned her plan to fly to Singapore and opted to cross the border illegally into Thailand.
    Andrew Nachemson, The Dial, 22 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Requests for heavy construction equipment, in particular, are often rejected; Israeli officials say Hamas fighters could use it to dig tunnels.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 19 Sep. 2026
  • The court rejected Kalshi’s broad interpretation of the Commodity Exchange Act and upheld an order allowing Nevada to enforce its gambling regulations against Kalshi’s sports event contracts.
    Rena Rowe, The Washington Examiner, 19 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Kingsolver cut off her waist-length hair and started wearing combat boots and an Army overcoat.
    Casey Cep, New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2026
  • Now their campaign appears to be entering a new phase, with a major offensive aimed at cutting off government forces in a central part of Yemen.
    Tim Lister, CNN Money, 21 Sep. 2026
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.

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Defect (from).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defect%20%28from%29. Accessed 23 Sep. 2026.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

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