treason

[tree-zuhn]

noun

1. the offense of acting to overthrow one's government or to harm or kill its sovereign.

2. a violation of allegiance to one's sovereign or to one's state.

3. the betrayal of a trust or confidence; breach of faith; treachery.

treason

/ ˈtriːzən /

noun

1. violation or betrayal of the allegiance that a person owes his sovereign or his country, esp by attempting to overthrow the government; high treason

2. any treachery or betrayal

Other Word Forms

• supertreason noun
• treasonableness noun
• treasonable adjective
• treasonably adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of treason¹

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English tre(i)so(u)n, from Anglo-French; Old French traïson, from Latin trāditiōn-, stem of trāditiō “delivery, transfer, betrayal”; tradition

Word History and Origins

Origin of treason¹

C13: from Old French traïson , from Latin trāditiō a handing over; see _tradition , _traditor

Synonym Study

Treason, sedition mean disloyalty or treachery to one's country or its government. Treason is any attempt to overthrow the government or impair the well-being of a state to which one owes allegiance; the crime of giving aid or comfort to the enemies of one's government. Sedition is any act, writing, speech, etc., directed unlawfully against state authority, the government, or constitution, or calculated to bring it into contempt or to incite others to hostility, ill will or disaffection; it does not amount to treason and therefore is not a capital offense. See disloyalty.

Example Sentences

The Indonesian leader - who has already had to cancel a trip to China over the unrest - said some demonstrations had gone beyond what was considered peaceful and may amount to "treason and terrorism".

From BBC

"But if Zelensky were to concede this land it would be not only a breakdown of our constitution, it could have the hallmarks of treason."

From BBC

The key to understanding the animosity was the more than 100 days that Hichilema, opposition leader at the time, spent in detention in 2017, awaiting trial on treason charges.

From BBC

All they had to do was look good; to fret over drought or heat was treason.

From Los Angeles Times

“We’ve heard terms like seditious conspiracy and treason. I’m not seeing anything close to that.”

From Salon

Related Words

• crime 
• mutiny 
• sedition 
• subversion 
• treachery