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# defy

verb (defy, defies, defied, defying)

«defy» in the English dictionary: everyday and in Jewish tradition — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. To defy someone is to refuse openly to obey them. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/defy/#m1)
2. To defy something, such as a law or danger, is to face it boldly as if it cannot beat you. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/defy/#m2)
3. To defy someone is also to dare them to do something. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/defy/#m3)

### In the lessons

in stories a hero defies a king or a magic spell; in lessons, to stand up against rules

### Examples

- I defy you to catch me! [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/defy/#x1)
- The girl defied her teacher and stayed outside. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/defy/#x2)
- The climbers defied the storm and reached the top. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/defy/#x3)

### Note

nothing for maths

## In Jewish tradition

in stories a hero defies a king or a magic spell; in lessons, to stand up against rules

### Examples

- It tends to be used of things that are marvelous, miraculous, or otherwise supernatural and extraordinary, i.e. that which defies the human ability to do or understand and must therefore be divine, e.g. \[Deuteronomy 28:59\], \[Psalm 118:23\], \[Psalm 139:6\]. (Sefer Yetzirah, Sefaria community translation) [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/D/defy/#x1)

### Note

nothing for maths

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «defy» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/defy/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«defy» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/defy.html) on Mova free.
- [Trees and pragmatics of «defy» in the Judaism dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/D/defy/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«defy» in the Judaism dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/judaism/w/defy.html) on Mova free.