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The Collaborative International Dictionary
Defied

defy \de*fy"\ (d[-e]*f[imac]"), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Defied (d[-e]*f[imac]d"); p. pr. & vb. n. Defying.] [F. d['e]fier, OF. deffier, desfier, LL. disfidare to disown faith or fidelity, to dissolve the bond of allegiance, as between the vassal and his lord; hence, to challenge, defy; fr. L. dis- + fides faith. See Faith, and cf. Diffident, Affiance.]

  1. To renounce or dissolve all bonds of affiance, faith, or obligation with; to reject, refuse, or renounce. [Obs.]

    I defy the surety and the bond.
    --Chaucer.

    For thee I have defied my constant mistress.
    --Beau. & Fl.

  2. To provoke to combat or strife; to call out to combat; to challenge; to dare; to brave; to set at defiance; to treat with contempt; as, to defy an enemy; to defy the power of a magistrate; to defy the arguments of an opponent; to defy public opinion.

    I once again Defy thee to the trial of mortal fight.
    --Milton.

    I defy the enemies of our constitution to show the contrary.
    --Burke.

Wiktionary
defied

vb. (en-pastdefy)

WordNet
defied

See defy

defy
  1. v. resist or confront with resistance; "The politician defied public opinion"; "The new material withstands even the greatest wear and tear"; "The bridge held" [syn: withstand, hold, hold up]

  2. elude, especially in a baffling way; "This behavior defies explanation" [syn: resist, refuse] [ant: lend oneself]

  3. challenge; "I dare you!" [syn: dare]

  4. [also: defied]

Usage examples of "defied".

The chill that had seeped into the thick-walled old fortress keep defied every effort to dispel it.

Patterns so intricate they defied the eye, paired with symbols of such weight that even to paint them seemed a kind of sacrilege, combined to make the illumination shine.

A foreign accent, a lack of basic geography, and a ring whose golden strands defied the eye were just a few of the things that intrigued him.

He tasted it without expression, then defied convention by handing the glass to Shelley and waiting for her judgment.

There was an elemental rapport between Chase and herself that defied logic or explanation.

It was just one of the many ways Caleb had defied regulations that made no sense to him.

She had ever been a fiery wench, but never before had she defied him so openly.

If she had defied him, if she had dared to go out with that boy again… what would he do?

The boy meant nothing to him, but if they had killed the boy, then they had openly defied the law.

Turned the eastlands into molten stone that cooled and became something that defied sorcery.

Fires surrounded it, but it seemed the squat structure defied the flames.

A soldier whose name she had already known - as a feared enemy, whose tactical prowess had defied Brood time and again, despite the odds against the Malazan's poorly supplied, numerically weakened forces.

She could have defied Kruppe, defied the Elder God, the Imass - what were these lost souls to her?

I have defied my own kin enough times to suffer few pangs doing so once more.

The chamber was filling rapidly with muck as the swamp trickled in to claim the city that had defied it for so long.