Word of the Day Archive
Saturday July 22, 2000
perfidy \PUR-fuh-dee\ , noun:
The act of violating faith or allegiance; violation of a promise or vow; faithlessness; treachery.
Having just fought a war to get rid of a king, the framers had "the perfidy of the chief magistrate" clearly in their sights when they included broad grounds for impeachment.
-- Ann H. Coulter, High Crimes and Misdemeanors
To ordinary Algerians, the news that chemical tests did not end until 1978 was renewed proof of the hypocrisy and perfidy of the military who have misruled them since independence in 1962.
-- "Bombshell that rocked generals in Algeria", Irish Times, October 25, 1997
Soon Esther has fallen desolately into the arms of her girlfriend,seeking advice and reassurance about the perfidy of men.
-- Janet Maslin, "Rendezvous in Paris", New York Times, August 9, 1996
Perfidy comes from Latin perfidia, from perfidus, faithless, treacherous, false, from per-, through (perhaps connoting deviation or infringement, or perhaps explicable by qui per fidem decipit, "who through faith or trust deceives") + fides, faith.
Dictionary.com Entry and Pronunciation for perfidy
