defection
Americannoun
-
desertion from allegiance, loyalty, duty, or the like; apostasy.
His defection to East Germany was regarded as treasonable.
- Antonyms:
- loyalty
-
failure; lack; loss.
He was overcome by a sudden defection of courage.
noun
Other Word Forms
- nondefection noun
- redefection noun
Etymology
Origin of defection
1535–45; < Latin dēfectiōn- (stem of dēfectiō ), equivalent to dēfect ( us ) ( defect ) + -iōn- -ion
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Whitford's defection came a day after he voted with his Reform UK colleagues to pass the party's first county council budget after it took control of the authority after May's local elections.
From BBC
The pace of defection stunned auto executives, who scrambled to remake their lineups.
"We may have the occasional election loss. We may even have the odd defection, but we will never be beaten," he said.
From BBC
Meanwhile, a drumbeat of defections have given the party a dose of that elusive political currency: momentum.
From BBC
In a letter obtained by BBC, Badenoch insisted the defections were "a minor setback, not a defining moment" for her party, and called for unity.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
