betrayal

English

Etymology

Etymology tree

English betray

Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-

Proto-Indo-European *-is

Proto-Indo-European *h₂élisder.?

Proto-Italic *-ālis

Latin -ālisbor.

Old French -albor.

▲

Latin -ālis

Old French -elbor.

▲

Latin -ālisbor.

Middle English -al

English -al

English betrayal

From betray + -al.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bɪˈtɹeɪəl/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eɪəl

Noun

betrayal (countable and uncountable, plural betrayals)

1. The act of betraying.

   Synonyms: perfidiousness, perfidy, treacherousness, treachery, treason; see also Thesaurus:betrayal

   • 1995 March 5, Robert Grudin, “Treasonable Matter”, in The New York Times‎^[1], New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC:

     But by the same token, an exclusive menu of betrayals is likely to be a starvation diet.

     (Can we archive this URL?)

   • 2005, Jesse Helms, Here's Where I Stand: A Memoir‎^[2], New York: Random House, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 106:

     The betrayal of our friends in Taiwan began with President Carter’s decision to terminate the mutual defense treaty with Taiwan that Congress had ratified in 1954.

   • 2017, BioWare, Mass Effect: Andromeda (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →OCLC, PC, scene: Received message: A Traitor:

     One of our own has joined with the alien. If you see him, do not hesitate to let him know what the Roekaar think of this betrayal.

Derived terms

• counterbetrayal
• nonbetrayal
• rebetrayal
• self-betrayal

Related terms

• betray

Translations

treason — see treason