摘要：“Defiance”源自古法语“defiance”，意为“挑战”或“不信任”，而后者又来自拉丁语“disfidare”（不信任、挑战），由“dis-”（否定前缀，意为“相反”）和“fidare”（信任，源自“fides”，意为“信仰”）组成。因此，“defia

defiance

英 [dɪ'faɪəns] 美 [dɪ'faɪəns]

n.蔑视；违抗；挑衅

“Defiance”源自古法语“defiance”，意为“挑战”或“不信任”，而后者又来自拉丁语“disfidare”（不信任、挑战），由“dis-”（否定前缀，意为“相反”）和“fidare”（信任，源自“fides”，意为“信仰”）组成。因此，“defiance”最初带有“背弃信任”或“公开对抗”的含义。这个词在14世纪进入英语，逐渐演变为描述对权威或命运的勇敢反抗，常与勇气和独立精神相关联。相关动词“defy”（反抗）也源于同一词根。

◉外刊例句

①《The New York Times》 (2023年10月5日)

In an act of defiance, protesters gathered in the square, waving banners despite the crackdown.

作为一种反抗行为，抗议者聚集在广场上，不顾镇压挥舞着横幅。

② 《The Economist》 (2024年9月22日)

The nation’s defiance of international sanctions has deepened its economic isolation.

该国对国际制裁的抗拒加深了其经济孤立。

◉经典名著

① 《简·爱》（Jane Eyre）——夏洛蒂·勃朗特 (1847年)

Her spirit burned with defiance, refusing to bend under the weight of injustice.

她的内心燃着反抗的火焰，拒绝在不公的重压下屈服。

② 《1984》——乔治·奥威尔 (1949年)

In his quiet defiance, Winston clung to the belief that truth could not be erased.

在他无声的反抗中，温斯顿坚信真相无法被抹去。

◉Usage examples

(1) His defiance of the law cost him dearly.

(2) Those who bid defiance to the law will get into trouble.

(3) They went in defiance of the order.

(4) He had been deposed because of his defiance of Roman law.

(5) North Korea's defiance makes these delicate missions both more difficult and more necessary.

(6) It was a breach of security, even a small act of defiance, to read this book publicly for pleasure.

(1) 蔑视法律使他付出沈重的代价。

(2) 蔑视法律者终要倒霉。

(3) 他们违抗命令还是去了。

(4) 亚那因为违抗罗马的法律而被罢免。

(5) 朝鲜公然挑衅使得这次棘手的外交使命更加困难也更有必要。

(6) 在公共场所为了消遣而看这种书是违犯安全规定的，甚至是一种小小的挑衅行为。

◉Usage Notes

Stand up when the powers that be order you to sit down, and you've given a fine example of defiance. It happens when someone or a group of someones openly flouts or challenges authority.

We owe this lovely descriptive term to the French — specifically to the Old French word defier, which means to defy. (Don't mix it up with deify; that means to make someone or something into a god.) If you've ever studied Latin, you'll spot the fi from fidare "to trust" that inspired the Marines' "semper fi" motto and the popular moniker for pooches––"Fido." Combining fi with de- negates it. So an act of defiance is essentially an act of not trusting.

1. [N-UNCOUNT 不可数名词]违抗；蔑视；挑战 Defiance is behaviour or an attitude which shows that you are not willing to obey someone. [oft N of n]

...his courageous defiance of the government.

他对政府的勇敢挑战

2. [PHRASE 短语]违抗（某人）；无视，不顾(规定、法律等) If you do something in defiance of a person, rule, or law, you do it even though you know that you are not allowed to do it. [PHR n]

Thousands of people have taken to the streets in defiance of the curfew.

成千上万的人不顾宵禁涌上街头。

来源：学无用的英语