How to Use disobey in a Sentence

disobey

verb
  • The driver had disobeyed the law.
  • He was afraid to disobey his father.
  • The soldier disobeyed the general's orders.
  • If you disobey, you will be severely punished.
  • By the time a guest disobeyed the sign, things had gotten dire.
    — Paris Martineau, WIRED, 24 June 2019
  • And when they were caught disobeying rules, they would be chained up and called the devil.
    — Paloma Esquivel, latimes.com, 21 June 2018
  • The owners then left the room, presumably to give the dogs a chance to obey or disobey.
    — Ádám Miklósi, Scientific American, 1 May 2015
  • Deckard’s charge is to deal with replicants that start disobeying orders.
    — Lorraine Boissoneault, Smithsonian, 4 Oct. 2017
  • The officer drew his gun as the driver disobeyed his commands to show his hands.
    — John Benson, cleveland.com, 12 Oct. 2017
  • Why did Adam and Eve disobey God and eat from the tree of knowledge?
    — Rabbi Avi Weiss, Jewish Journal, 9 Oct. 2017
  • This was neither the first nor the last time that Patton disobeyed an order.
    — Davis Winkie, USA Today, 14 Oct. 2025
  • Furious at being disobeyed, the man sent his son to his room and turned to the girlfriend.
    — Ashley Vega, People.com, 4 Apr. 2025
  • Lawyers for both sides agree Ury disobeyed the order and worked without a permit.
    — Emilie Eaton, San Antonio Express-News, 22 Feb. 2018
  • Harvick said the agency gave lawful orders for the crowd to move back, which were disobeyed.
    — Daniella Silva, NBC news, 20 Oct. 2025
  • Kids also outsmart their parents and sometimes lie to or disobey them.
    — Common Sense Media, Washington Post, 22 Sep. 2023
  • They cannot be allowed to catwalk around while disobeying court orders.
    — Samuel Gebre, Bloomberg.com, 29 Mar. 2018
  • Icarus disobeying his father Daedalus and flying too close to the sun.
    — Literary Hub, 26 May 2026
  • There is a case — a very fine and honorable one that is dear to my heart — for disobeying unjust laws.
    — Kevin D. Williamson, National Review, 6 Mar. 2020
  • But does the dog feel responsible for the mess and sorry about having disobeyed your rules?
    — Julie Hecht, Scientific American, 1 May 2017
  • There is no right to openly violate the law and disobey law enforcement.
    — CBS News, 11 Feb. 2025
  • What gives the protesters the right to cause damage and disobey public order?
    — Kevin Flowers, USA TODAY, 18 June 2020
  • What is the penalty for disobeying a traffic signal?
    — Emery Glover, Des Moines Register, 16 Feb. 2026
  • Cummins disobeyed that order a week later and was suspended, the records said.
    — Washington Post, 26 Apr. 2017
  • Lampy, like so many of the people Farouk encounters, is disobeying the trees.
    — Margot Livesey, BostonGlobe.com, 13 July 2018
  • Suzie is livid that Sunny kept the bird, disobeying Suzie’s orders.
    — Chris Klimek, Vulture, 31 July 2024
  • The app will also unveil additional ways to reports posts that disobey the new rules.
    — Sophie Lewis, CBS News, 18 Sep. 2019
  • Rumors of the pit’s riches spread, and a day later some miners decided to disobey the féticheur.
    — Nicolas Niarchos, The New Yorker, 24 May 2021
  • When should troops disobey their superiors?
    — TheWeek, 23 Jan. 2026
  • But that didn't stop a group of people from disobeying the law in East Tennessee.
    — Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY, 3 July 2024
  • During that same month, the nuns disobeyed the Vatican’s ruling.
    — Charna Flam, People.com, 4 Dec. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'disobey.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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