Nearby Words
verb (used with object)
1.
to decline to accept (something offered): to refuse an award.
2.
to decline to give; deny (a request, demand, etc.): to refuse permission.
3.
to express a determination not to (do something): to refuse to discuss the question.
4.
to decline to submit to.
5.
EXPAND(of a horse) to decline to leap over (a barrier).
verb (used without object)
9.
to decline acceptance, consent, or compliance.
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Refusing
is always a great word to know.
So is quincunx. Does it mean:
| an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle. |
| the offspring of a zebra and a donkey. |
Origin:
1300–50; Middle English refusen < Middle French refuser, Old French ≪ Latin refūsus, past participle of refundere to pour back; see refund1
1300–50; Middle English refusen < Middle French refuser, Old French ≪ Latin refūsus, past participle of refundere to pour back; see refund1
Related forms
re·fus·a·ble, adjective
re·fus·er, noun
qua·si-re·fused, adjective
un·re·fus·a·ble, adjective
un·re·fused, adjective
EXPANDun·re·fus·ing, adjective
COLLAPSESynonyms
1. rebuff. Refuse, decline, reject, spurn all imply nonacceptance of something. To decline is milder and more courteous than to refuse, which is direct and often emphatic in expressing determination not to accept what is offered or proposed: to refuse a bribe; to decline an invitation. To reject is even more positive and definite than refuse: to reject a suitor. To spurn is to reject with scorn: to spurn a bribe.
1. rebuff. Refuse, decline, reject, spurn all imply nonacceptance of something. To decline is milder and more courteous than to refuse, which is direct and often emphatic in expressing determination not to accept what is offered or proposed: to refuse a bribe; to decline an invitation. To reject is even more positive and definite than refuse: to reject a suitor. To spurn is to reject with scorn: to spurn a bribe.
Antonyms
1. accept, welcome.
1. accept, welcome.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source
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Link To refusing
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
refuse
late 14c. (adj.), "outcast;" meaning "waste, trash" is from c.1440; from O.Fr. refus "waste product, rubbish," a back-formation from the pp. of refuser (see refuse (v.)).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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