Synonyms for confute
- verb
Most common
Forms
- Past participle
- confuted
e.g. confuted → disproved, overthrown, contradicted, refuted…
Choose the right word
To refute and to confute are to answer so as to admit of no reply. To refute a statement is to demonstrate its falsity by argument or countervailing proof; confute is substantially the same in meaning, tho differing in usage.
J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)
Example sentences
- overthrow They conspire to overthrow the oppressive government.
- contradict Let our action never contradict what we have said.
- refute It is much harder to refute a lie than to tell one.
- disprove All you need is one counterexample to disprove a theory.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| confute | falling | |
| overthrow | falling | |
| contradict | rising | |
| refute | steady | |
| disprove | steady |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 5 letters
- rebut2
- 6 letters
- refute2
- 8 letters
- disprove2
- 9 letters
- overthrow3
- 10 letters
- contradict3
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (rebut2 = 2 syllables).