to state that (something declared or believed to be true) is not true: to deny an accusation.
2.
to refuse to agree or accede to: to deny a petition.
3.
to withhold the possession, use, or enjoyment of: to deny access to secret information.
4.
to withhold something from, or refuse to grant a request of: to deny a beggar.
5.
to refuse to recognize or acknowledge; disown; disavow; repudiate: to deny one's gods.
6.
to withhold (someone) from accessibility to a visitor: The secretary denied his employer to all those without appointments.
7.
Obsolete. to refuse to take or accept.
—Idiom
8.
deny oneself, to refrain from satisfying one's desires or needs; practice self-denial.
[Origin: 1250–1300; ME denien < OF denier < L dénegāre.See denegation]
—Related forms
de·ny·ing·ly, adverb
—Synonyms 1. dispute, controvert, oppose, gainsay. Deny,contradict both imply objecting to or arguing against something. To deny is to say that something is not true: to deny an allegation. To contradict is to declare that the contrary is true: to contradict a statement. 5. renounce, abjure.
To decline to grant or allow; refuse: deny the student's request; denied the prisoner food or water.
To give a refusal to; turn down or away: The protesters were determined not to be denied.
To restrain (oneself) especially from indulgence in pleasures.
[Middle English denien, from Old French denier, from Latin dēnegāre : dē-, de- + negāre, to say no; see ne in Indo-European roots.]
Synonyms: These verbs mean to refuse to admit the existence, truth, or value of: denied the rumor; contradicted the statement; contravene a conclusion; disaffirm a suggestion; trying to gainsay the evidence; negated the allegations; traverse an indictment.
c.1300, from O.Fr. denier, from L. denegare, from de- "away" + negare "refuse, say 'no,' " from Old L. nec "not," from Italic base *nek- "not," from PIE base *ne- "no, not" (see un-).
declare untrue; contradict; "He denied the allegations"; "She denied that she had taken money" [ant: acknowledge]
2.
refuse to accept or believe; "He denied his fatal illness"
3.
refuse to grant, as of a petition or request; "The dean denied the students' request for more physics courses"; "the prisoners were denied the right to exercise for more than 2 hours a day"
4.
refuse to let have; "She denies me every pleasure"; "he denies her her weekly allowance" [ant: allow]
5.
deny oneself (something); restrain, especially from indulging in some pleasure; "She denied herself wine and spirits"
6.
deny formally (an allegation of fact by the opposing party) in a legal suit [syn: traverse]
7.
refuse to recognize or acknowledge; "Peter denied Jesus"
Ab"ne*gate\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Abnegated; p. pr. & vb. n. Abnegating.] [L. abnegatus,p. p. of abnegare; ab + negare to deny. See Deny.] To deny and reject; to abjure. --Sir E. Sandys. Farrar.
Af*firm"\ ([a^]f*f[~e]rm"), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Affirmed (-f[~e]rmd"); p. pr. & vb. n. Affirming.] [OE. affermen, OF. afermer, F. affirmer, affermir, fr. L. affirmare; ad + firmare to make firm, firmus firm. See Firm.]1. To make firm; to confirm, or ratify; esp. (Law), to assert or confirm, as a judgment, decree, or order, brought before an appellate court for review. 2. To assert positively; to tell with confidence; to aver; to maintain as true; -- opposed to deny. Jesus, . . . whom Paul affirmed to be alive. --Acts xxv. 19. 3. (Law) To declare, as a fact, solemnly, under judicial sanction. See Affirmation, 4. Syn: To assert; aver; declare; asseverate; assure; pronounce; protest; avouch; confirm; establish; ratify. Usage: To Affirm, Asseverate, Aver, Protest. We affirm when we declare a thing as a fact or a proposition. We asseverate it in a peculiarly earnest manner, or with increased positiveness as what can not be disputed. We aver it, or formally declare it to be true, when we have positive knowledge of it. We protest in a more public manner and with the energy of perfect sincerity. People asseverate in order to produce a conviction of their veracity; they aver when they are peculiarly desirous to be believed; they protest when they wish to free themselves from imputations, or to produce a conviction of their innocence.