denial

[dih-nahy-uhl] / dɪˈnaɪ əl /

NOUN

dismissal, refusal of belief in

Synonyms

STRONGEST

disapproval rebuttal rejection repudiation retraction veto

STRONG

adjuration brush-off contradiction declination disavowal disclaimer disproof dissent forswearing nay negation negative nix nonacceptance prohibition protestation rebuff refutal refutation renouncement renunciation repulse turndown

WEAK

abstaining cold shoulder controversion disallowance dismissing gainsaying noncommittal refraining refusing rejecting renegement repudiating statement abnegation

Antonyms

STRONGEST

allowance approval confirmation ratification sanction

STRONG

agreement permission

WEAK

affirmation avowal claim corroboration vouching

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

There’s so much shame and confusion on the part of the person who needs help, and sometimes there’s denial that anything bad is happening.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 6, 2026

Called distributed denial of service, or DDoS, attacks, these were massive floods of junk internet data designed to knock websites offline by overwhelming the data pipes that connected them.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

The news follows a Monday denial of negotiations from a spokesperson for Iran’s foreign ministry.

From Barron's • Mar. 31, 2026

"I think we've struggled in the west to have honest, sincere, discussions about death. Our western denial of death has been very Victorian," he said.

From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026

“I read in that grocery-store newspaper all about you boys,” the other trooper said, ignoring my denial.

From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam

denial

Example Sentences

Related Words