Question

defy

Accepted Answer

de‧fy /dɪˈfaɪ/ verb (past tense and past participle defied, present participle defying, third person singular defies) [transitive]
1to refuse to obey a law or rule, or refuse to do what someone in authority tells you to do → defiance:
people who openly defy the law
2defy description/analysis/belief etc to be almost impossible to describe or understand:
The beauty of the scene defies description.
3defy logic/the odds etc to not happen according to the principles you would expect:
a 16-week premature baby who defied the odds and survived
4I defy somebody to do something spoken formal used when you ask someone to do something that you think is impossible:
I defy anyone to prove otherwise.
THESAURUS
disobey to not obey a person, order, rule, or law: In the army, it is a crime to disobey a superior officer. | He had disobeyed the school rules.
break a law/rule to not obey a law or rule: Anyone who breaks the law must expect to be punished.
defy formal to deliberately refuse to obey a rule or law, or what someone in authority tells you to do: The police arrested the youth for defying a court order.
flout /flaʊt/ formal to deliberately disobey a rule or law in a very public way: Timber companies are continuing to flout environmental laws.
violate formal to disobey a law, or do something that is against an agreement or principle: Both countries have accused each other of violating the treaty. | Technically he had violated the law.
contravene formal to be against a law, rule, or agreement, or to do something that is against a law, rule, or agreement: The British government’s actions contravened the European Convention on Human Rights.

Defy Law Formal Obey Rule Disobey Refuse Participle