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 was no immediate confirmation or denial from Washington.

From Barron's • Apr. 4, 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

Justice Sonia Sotomayor made that clear in her stinging and persuasive dissent from the court’s denial of certiorari.

From Slate • Mar. 27, 2026

But Iran's denial does not necessarily mean it is against talks.

From BBC • Mar. 25, 2026

Jan’s denial of having come to the home would not be believed now; it would make Mr. Dalton and Britten feel that he was trying to cover up something of even much greater seriousness.

From "Native Son" by Richard Wright

denial

Example Sentences

Related Words