perfidy
4
9.9
- noun
- /ˈpɜr.fɪ.di/
- Formal
:
traición
- Palestine's Arab neighbors were angry about both Zionist inroads and British power and perfidy in their part of the world.
Painful, painful, unjust death accompanied by betrayal, the perfidy of the mob and the dominion of the tyrant.
- Painful, painful, unjust death accompanied by betrayal, the perfidy of the mob and the dominion of the tyrant.
- It's a shame she's undermined her own substantive claims of abuse with her perfidy.
Examples
-
Gandhi, of course, was relentless in his critique of British perfidy and he would have liked your speech.
-
The director of the CIA refused to accept the blame for the perfidy of a lame-duck president.
Blog text (31) -
I always point to the perfidy of the War Office on this issue.
Blog text (16) -
For others, not being number one can only be explained by the perfidy of others and must be addressed by stern measures.
Academic text (1993) -
The promise of milk and honey becomes the perfidy of persecution and death.
Academic text (1991) -
I think what happened here will be regarded as yet another manifestation of French perfidy and ineptitude in battle.
Fiction book (2000) -
Humphrey seems to brood with his narrator upon the perfidies of history, and Texas history in particular.
Academic text (1991) -
Khamenei also indirectly warned Washington's allies of U.S. perfidy.
Academic text (2011) -
What better proof could Chávez offer of U.S. perfidy than the betrayal of its best friend in the hemisphere?
Academic text (2008) -
The politician's perfidy in betraying his party shocked his supporters.
Synonyms
197
3.9
An act of not being loyal to someone, for example telling their secrets or helping an enemy
46
3.2
Actions like lying, cheating, or stealing
46
7.5
To betray someone's trust or loyalty
5
7.4
An act of betraying someone who trusted you after pretending to help them
4
6.7
To break the trust someone gives you by acting dishonestly or failing a duty
3
6.7
Acting secretly to hurt someone you seem friendly with
1
6.1
Not being loyal to a partner, for example having a secret romantic or sexual relationship
1
7.7
Not being loyal or keeping promises to people who trust you
A way of acting that is disloyal and betrays someone's trust
The act of betraying your country or people by helping their enemies
Being disloyal to your country, friends, or cause
Lack of loyalty that breaks trust between people
Antonyms
How Treacherous
Surface Forms
Morphology
perfidy = perfidious (opaque) = per + fid + y
Although historically analyzable as Latin per- + fid- + -y, these combining forms are not productive or familiar to average learners, so the meaning cannot be derived from the parts.
Etymology
The word perfidy comes from Latin parts per- and fidus, where fidus means 'faith' and appears in words like fidelity and confide. So perfidy is a breaking of 'faith' — in other words a betrayal of 'trust'.