Synonyms of defying

defying

verb

present participle of defy

1

as in disobeying

to go against the commands, prohibitions, or rules of

in those days a woman was brave if she defied fashion and wore white after Labor Day

Synonyms & Similar Words

• disobeying
• ignoring
• violating
• mocking
• resisting
• dismissing
• rejecting
• opposing
• disregarding
• fighting
• rebelling (against)
• flouting
• overlooking
• breaching
• scorning
• withstanding
• transgressing
• breaking
• combating
• passing over
• contesting
• bucking
• revolting (against)
• disputing
• disobliging
• brushing (off)
• pooh-poohing
• tuning out
• infringing
• shrugging off
• scoffing (at)
• winking (at)
• overpassing
• mutinying (against)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• following
• obeying
• complying (with)
• conforming (to)
• serving
• submitting (to)
• yielding (to)
• minding
• surrendering (to)
• deferring (to)
• stooping (to)
• conceding (to)
• cooperating (with)
• keeping
• observing
• capitulating (to)
• obliging
• agreeing (to)
• regarding
• heeding
• hearing
• attending
• goose-stepping (to)
• watching
• marking
• noticing
• noting
• listening (to)
• acceding (to)
• assenting (to)
• acquiescing (to)

2

as in daring

to invite (someone) to take part in a contest or to perform a feat

after missing the target, she defied her boyfriend to do better

Synonyms & Similar Words

• daring
• challenging
• confronting
• stumping
• braving
• breasting
• facing
• brazening
• bearding
• outbraving
• outfacing

3

as in confronting

to oppose (something hostile or dangerous) with firmness or courage

a rescue team willing to defy the raging storm

Synonyms & Similar Words

• confronting
• facing
• braving
• withstanding
• daring
• resisting
• breasting
• encountering
• standing up to
• brazening
• fighting
• outbraving
• bearding
• meeting
• outfacing
• affronting
• challenging
• approaching
• fronting
• standing
• opposing
• facing up (to)
• battling
• combating
• accosting
• repelling
• cornering
• contending (with)
• squaring (off)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• avoiding
• sidestepping
• dodging
• shirking
• ducking
• eschewing
• shunning
• evading
• shaking
• escaping
• eluding
• funking

4

as in resisting

to refuse to give in to

a bicyclist who regularly defies illness and infirmity in order to compete in races

Synonyms & Similar Words

• resisting
• opposing
• withstanding
• fighting
• bucking
• repelling
• combating
• thwarting
• contradicting
• contesting
• challenging
• battling
• countering
• hindering
• contending (with)
• stemming
• obstructing
• disputing
• balking
• frustrating
• checking
• baffling
• foiling

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• submitting (to)
• yielding (to)
• bowing (to)
• succumbing (to)
• surrendering (to)
• stooping (to)
• giving in (to)
• capitulating (to)
• knuckling under (to)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of defying

If random disclosure of common-sense-defying detail is your idea of a searing, poignant journey into the light of faith, there’s more where that came from. — Matthew Walther, The Atlantic, 20 July 2026

Even as Blinken outlined America’s vision for postwar Gaza, Netanyahu was already defying it. — David D. Kirkpatrick, New Yorker, 20 July 2026

The 39-year-old Messi, meanwhile, has led defending champion Argentina to a second consecutive World Cup final and continues defying time itself. — Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 17 July 2026

The 39-year-old Messi’s age-defying run at this tournament, which includes eight goals and counting, has put Icons in a position to match, if not exceed, its sales from Qatar. — Justin Birnbaum, Sportico.com, 15 July 2026

But if those age-defying performances were outliers, playing into your mid-40s and even early 50s may soon become, if not common, at least less unusual. — Los Angeles Times, 15 July 2026

The traditionalist Catholic group whose bishops and priests were excommunicated last week for defying Pope Leo XIV has ties to the Kansas City area. — Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 9 July 2026

Elsewhere, Fliegen Lernen finds Wüsthoff working alongside Onnen Bock and Bureau B’s Gunther Buskies on rhythmically adventurous, genre-defying pieces that revisit the collective spirit of Faust’s earliest days. — Spin Staff, SPIN, 9 July 2026

Oppenheimer follow-up about a man haunted by defying the gods & dooming civilization — this one fights to avenge his own hubris. — James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 6 July 2026