Synonyms for disavow
Synonyms by meaning
Verb
1. Recant — to strongly and solemnly refuse to own or acknowledge; to deny responsibility for, approbation of, and the…
recant, renounce, disown, abjure formal, take back, withdraw, disclaim, disallow, swallow, forswear, revoke, unsay, retract dated, forsay dated
2. Repudiate — to deny; to show the contrary of; to deny legitimacy or achievement of any kind
Other
Definitions
- v. 1
To strongly and solemnly refuse to own or acknowledge; to deny responsibility for, approbation of, and the like.
He was charged with embezzlement, but he disavows the crime.
- v. 2
To deny; to show the contrary of; to deny legitimacy or achievement of any kind.
Because of her dissatisfaction, she now disavows the merits of socialism.
Related words
- Word family
- disavowal
Forms
- Past participle
- disavowed
e.g. disavowed → recanted, renounced, disowned, abjured…
Choose the right word
A person may deny, disavow, disclaim, disown what has been truly or falsely imputed to him or supposed to be his. He may deny his signature, disavow the act of his agent, disown his child; he may repudiate a just claim or a base suggestion.
J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)
Example sentences
- withdraw You may as well withdraw from the club right away.
- renounce I renounce everything as long as I can be with you.
- disown If Republicans hated pedophiles, they would disown Ted Nugent.
- recant Tom had to recant or face excommunication.
- deny You can't deny the fact that she had a hand in it.
- repudiate My parents would repudiate my brother if they ever found out he was gay.
By length
- 4 letters
- deny2
- 5 letters
- unsay
- 6 letters
- reject2, revoke2, disown2, recant2, impugn2, abjure, forsay
- 7 letters
- swallow2, retract2
- 8 letters
- withdraw2, renounce2, disprove2, disallow3, disclaim2, forswear2
- 9 letters
- repudiate4
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (deny2 = 2 syllables).
In other languages
- Français
- désavouer
- Italiano
- rinnegare
- Deutsch
- desavouieren