Defers to is a popular phrase that indicates an act of submission or giving way to another person's opinion, suggestion or decision. Some common antonyms for defers to include resisting, opposing, challenging, disputing, contradicting, questioning and defying. Resisting is the opposite of deferring to, and it refers to the act of going contrary to what someone believes or wants. Opposing, challenging and disputing are used to describe situations where there are different opinions or ideas that are at conflict with each other. Contradicting and questioning involve expressing doubts or skepticism about a particular decision or suggestion while defying means actively rebelling against someone's authority or decision.