# defect

Pronunciation: say "DEE-fekt" /ˈdiːfɛkt/

## Noun

1. A fault or malfunction in something, especially one that affects how well it works.
   - Simple: A fault or problem that stops something from working the way it should.
   - _A manufacturing defect caused the brakes to fail._
   - _Inspectors flagged several defects in the bridge supports._
6. The quantity or amount by which something falls short of a required or expected total.
   - Simple: The amount by which something is less than a needed or expected total.
   - _Auditors calculated the defect between projected and actual revenue._
   - _A defect in the harvest left the village short of grain for the winter._
7. The part by which a figure or quantity is deficient or falls short of a reference value.
   - Simple: The amount by which a number or shape falls short of a full or expected value.
   - _The angular defect at each vertex measures how far the surrounding angles fall short of a full turn._
   - _Summing the defects across all vertices of a convex polyhedron always totals 720 degrees._

## Verb

Pronunciation: say "di-FEKT" /dɪˈfɛkt/

2. To abandon a group such as a political party or military force, switching one's loyalty to the opposing side.
   - Simple: To leave a group you belonged to and support its rival instead.
   - _Two senior officials defected to the opposition during the campaign._
   - _Soldiers who defect risk severe punishment if they are caught._
3. To flee one's own country and seek asylum in another, usually to escape danger or persecution.
   - Simple: To escape from your own country and ask another country to let you stay safely.
   - _The diplomat defected and requested asylum at a foreign embassy._
   - _Several athletes chose to defect while competing overseas._
4. To desert one's own army and flee from combat without permission.
   - Simple: To run away from your own army and leave the fighting.
   - _Hundreds of troops defected during the long winter siege._
   - _Men who defect in wartime are often hunted down by their own side._
5. To leave one's own side and take up arms with the enemy's army.
   - Simple: To leave your own army and fight for the enemy instead.
   - _A whole regiment defected and took up arms with the invaders._
   - _Spies who defect to the enemy bring valuable intelligence with them._

## Origin

Borrowed from Latin defectus ("a failure, lack"), from deficere ("to fail, lack," literally "to undo"), formed from de- ("of, from") plus facere ("to do").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/defect (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).