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ENGLISH DICTIONARY

Refuse

/ˈɹɛfjuːs/ · adjective

Meaning

Discarded, rejected..

Definitions by Sense

  1. Discarded, rejected.
  2. Collectively, items or material that have been discarded; rubbish, garbage.
  3. (transitive) To decline (a request or demand).
  4. (intransitive) To decline a request or demand, forbear; to withhold permission.
  5. (ditransitive) To withhold (something) from (someone); to not give it to them or to bar them from having it.
  6. (military) To throw back, or cause to keep back (as the centre, a wing, or a flank), out of the regular alignment when troops are about to engage the enemy.
  7. (obsolete, transitive) To disown.
  8. (obsolete) refusal

Example Sentences

My request for a pay rise was refused.
After the death of his [Verney's] first wife, he proposed to Florence Nightingale but she refused him. Later he married her sister, and for many years Claydon was Miss Nightingale's second home.
I refuse to listen to this nonsense any more.
I asked the star if I could have her autograph, but she refused.
If ye refuse […] ye shall be devoured with the sword.
The U. N. sent a commission to arrange for election of a Korean government. Russia and her satellites declined to cooperate with this Commission. Russia refused to let the Commission hold an election in north Korea, or even to enter north Korea. In southern Korea Leftist parties refused to meet with the Commission.
Eventually, the railway opened on Monday, December 14, 1896, with a universal fare of 1d. collected at the turnstiles, and conditions were immediately chaotic, as many passengers travelled round and round, and refused to leave the cars.
City were outclassed thereafter and Roberto Mancini said that substitute Carlos Tevez refused to play.

Synonyms for refuse

Antonyms for refuse

Related Words

Word Forms

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

Practice and Learn More

Frequently Asked Questions

What does refuse mean?

Refuse means Discarded, rejected..

What is a synonym for refuse?

Common synonyms include discards, garbage, rubbish, trash.

What is the opposite of refuse?

Possible antonyms include apply, have, take, admit.

How do you use refuse in a sentence?

My request for a pay rise was refused.

Sources & Attribution

FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0

Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.