disobedience
n. uncountablen. the act of refusing to do what you are told by someone in power. It means breaking a rule or law on purpose.
n. the failure or refusal to obey rules, laws, or someone in authority. Often used in political or social contexts to describe non-violent protest.
The student faced punishment for his disobedience in class.
Civil disobedience remains a powerful tool for activists seeking to change unjust laws through peaceful resistance.
The general warned that any further acts of disobedience among the ranks would be met with immediate court-martial to maintain military discipline.
From Middle English disobedience, dysobediaunce, from Old French desobedience. By surface analysis, dis- + obedience. Displaced native Old English unhīersumnes.
Often paired with the adjective 'civil' or the preposition 'to' ('disobedience to the law').