Definition

1. Noun:

   • A fault, imperfection, or shortcoming: A "defect" is a flaw or deficiency that makes something or someone not perfect or not function correctly.
   • A lack of something necessary for completeness: It can refer to an absence of something that should be present.

2. Verb:

   • To abandon one's country, cause, or allegiance for another: To "defect" means to leave a group, organization, or nation, often to join an opposing one.

Usage Examples

• Noun:

  • The car was recalled due to a manufacturing defect in the braking system.
  • His only defect is that he can be impatient at times.
  • The diamond was beautiful, but it had a tiny defect on one facet.

• Verb:

  • The scientist decided to defect to another country, taking valuable research with him.
  • Several soldiers chose to defect during the war.

Advanced Usage

• "Inherent defect": A flaw that is a natural or built-in part of something.

  • The collapse was caused by an inherent defect in the bridge's design.

• "Latent defect": A flaw that exists but is not immediately apparent or active.

  • The home inspection failed to find the latent defect in the foundation.

Variants and Related Words

• Defective (adj): Having a defect or defects; faulty or imperfect.

  • The factory recalled all defective products.

• Defection (n): The act of defecting.

  • His defection from the political party caused a major scandal.

Synonyms

• Noun: Flaw, fault, imperfection, blemish, deficiency, shortcoming.
• Verb: Desert, abandon, renounce, switch sides.

Related Phrases

• "Zero defects": A quality control standard aiming for no flaws in production.

  • The company's goal is a policy of zero defects.

• "Birth defect": A physical or biochemical abnormality present from birth.

  • The child was born with a congenital heart defect.

Idioms

• "Tragic flaw / Fatal defect": A character defect that leads to the downfall of a protagonist in literature or life.
  • In the play, the king's pride was his tragic defect.

Noun

1. a mark or flaw that spoils the appearance of something (especially on a person's body)
   • a facial blemish
2. an imperfection in an object or machine
   • a flaw caused the crystal to shatter
   • if there are any defects you should send it back to the manufacturer
3. a failing or deficiency
   • that interpretation is an unfortunate defect of our lack of information
4. an imperfection in a bodily system
   • visual defects
   • this device permits detection of defects in the lungs

Verb

1. desert (a cause, a country or an army), often in order to join the opposing cause, country, or army
   • If soldiers deserted Hitler's army, they were shot