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repudiate - 5 dictionary results

re⋅pu⋅di⋅ate

  [ri-pyoo-dee-eyt]
Use repudiate in a Sentence
–verb (used with object), -at⋅ed, -at⋅ing.
1. to reject as having no authority or binding force: to repudiate a claim.
2. to cast off or disown: to repudiate a son.
3. to reject with disapproval or condemnation: to repudiate a new doctrine.
4. to reject with denial: to repudiate a charge as untrue.
5. to refuse to acknowledge and pay (a debt), as a state, municipality, etc.
Origin:
1535–45; < L repudiātus (ptp. of repudiāre to reject, refuse), equiv. to repudi(um) a casting off, divorce (re- re- + pud(ere) to make ashamed, feel shame (see pudendum ) + -ium -ium ) + -ātus -ate 1

Related forms:
re⋅pu⋅di⋅a⋅ble, adjective
re⋅pu⋅di⋅a⋅tive, adjective
re⋅pu⋅di⋅a⋅tor, noun

Synonyms:
1. disavow, renounce, discard, disclaim. 3. condemn, disapprove.

Antonyms:
1. accept. 3. approve.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To repudiate
re·pu·di·ate   (rĭ-pyōō'dē-āt')   
tr.v.   re·pu·di·at·ed, re·pu·di·at·ing, re·pu·di·ates
  1. To reject the validity or authority of: "Chaucer . . . not only came to doubt the worth of his extraordinary body of work, but repudiated it" (Joyce Carol Oates).
  2. To reject emphatically as unfounded, untrue, or unjust: repudiated the accusation.
  3. To refuse to recognize or pay: repudiate a debt.
    1. To disown (a child, for example).
    2. To refuse to have any dealings with.

[Latin repudiāre, repudiāt-, from repudium, divorce.]
re·pu'di·a'tive adj., re·pu'di·a'tor n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Repudiate

Re*pu"di*ate\ (-?t), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Repudiated (-?`t?d); p. pr. & vb. n. Repudiating.] [L. repudiatus, p. p. of repudiare to repudiate, reject, fr. repudium separation, divorce; pref. re- re- + pudere to be ashamed.]

1. To cast off; to disavow; to have nothing to do with; to renounce; to reject.

Servitude is to be repudiated with greater care. --Prynne.

2. To divorce, put away, or discard, as a wife, or a woman one has promised to marry.

His separation from Terentis, whom he repudiated not long afterward. --Bolingbroke.

3. To refuse to acknowledge or to pay; to disclaim; as, the State has repudiated its debts.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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repudiate 
1545, "to cast off by divorce," from adj. meaning "divorced, rejected, condemned" (1464), from L. repudiatus, pp. of repudiare "to divorce or reject," from repudium "divorce, rejection," from re- "back, away" + pudium, probably related to pes-/ped- "foot." The original notion may be of kicking something away, but folk etymology commonly connects it with pudere "cause shame to." Of opinions, conduct, etc., attested from 1824.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: re·pu·di·ate
Pronunciation: ri-'pyü-dE-"At
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: -at·ed; -at·ing
: to disavow or reject an obligation (as a debt) or duty (as performance under a contract); specifically : to indicate an inability or unwillingness to perform as promised under (a contract) —re·pu·di·a·tor /-"A-t&r/ noun
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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