perfidy

Meaning

Noun

• A state or act of violating faith or allegiance; violation of a promise or vow, or of trust
• Specifically, in warfare, an illegitimate act of deception, such as using symbols like the Red Cross or white flag in a false claim of surrender to gain proximity to an enemy for purposes of attack.
• A state or act of deceit.

Related

Similar words

• perfidiousness

Origin

• From Middle French perfidie, from Latin perfidus, from fides; related to, for example, English fidelity.