disobey
/ˌdɪs.əˈbeɪ/verb
disobey is spelled D-I-S-O-B-E-Y: 7 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 35,748th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, disobey means “To refuse or (intentionally) fail to adhere to (a rule) or to obey an order from (somebody)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in disobey?
| Letters | 7: D-I-S-O-B-E-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 35,748th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is disobey?
Disobey appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 35,748th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce disobey?
- UK /ˌdɪs.əˈbeɪ/
- US /ˌdɪs.əˈbeɪ/
- US /ˌdɪs.oʊˈbeɪ/
Disobey has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-disobey.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with disobey?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as disobey from its last stressed vowel (/eɪ/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of disobey
- disobeys present, singular, he/she/it
- disobeying participle, present
- disobeyed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does disobey mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To refuse or (intentionally) fail to adhere to (a rule) or to obey an order from (somebody).
disobey the rules
- 2
To refuse or (intentionally) fail to obey.
Under an authoritarian regime, people have an obligation to disobey.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Disobey in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | désobéir |
| German | missachten , nicht gehorchen |
| Portuguese | desobedecer, desacatar |
| Spanish | desobedecer, desacatar , insubordinarse, indisciplinarse |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does disobey come from?
From Old French desobeir.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).