disobedience
/dɪs.əˈbiː.dɪəns/
disobedience · noun — refusal to obey. It carries an Arena rating of 1455, earned across 6 head-to-head judged battles.
Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, disobedience ranks #3,031 of 17,165 for Most Satisfying to Say, #4,410 of 17,187 for Most Malleable Words, #5,213 of 17,171 for Scariest Words, #6,415 of 17,176 for Most Incisive Words.
disobedience is pronounced /dɪs.əˈbiː.dɪəns/.
Why “disobedience” is a great word
The refusal or failure to obey rules, commands, or an authority. From Middle English disobedience, dysobediaunce, from Old French desobedience, equivalent to the prefix dis- (expressing reversal or negation) + obedience (from Latin oboedientia). It displaced the native Old English term unhīersumnes. First attested in Middle English, c. 1350–1400. Unlike 'noncompliance,' which neutrally names a lack of conformity, or 'insubordination,' which specifies a direct challenge to hierarchical authority, disobedience carries the particular charge of willful, conscious defiance. It is the child standing still in the doorway, the striker's folded arms, the hand that quietly returns the forbidden book to the shelf—a small, necessary crack in the edifice of the expected, a human insistence that obedience is not inevitable.
❧ Essay by Lexicurio’s AI · definition, etymology & citations from published sources
Etymology
From Middle English disobedience, dysobediaunce, from Old French desobedience. By surface analysis, dis- + obedience. Displaced native Old English unhīersumnes.
noun
- Refusal to obey.e.g.“The teacher complained of the child's disobedience.”
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
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