SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS

defector

noun

Someone who leaves a group, cause, or country to join another, often opposing, side.

Compare the alternatives Definition and examples

Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.

Person who changes allegiance

Closest synonyms

deserter renegade turncoat apostate

Related words and expressions

These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.

Usage distinction

Apostate often concerns religion; a deserter may abandon a post without joining an opposing side.

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CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT

See defector in use

The fictional council learned that a defector had joined its rival faction.

Dictionary practice example.

A defector in the story game left the River League and carried its route map to the rival Hill Alliance, which accepted him as a member.

From Changing Allegiances.

Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.

Synonym reference scope and sources

The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.

How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license

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