denial

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noun de·ni·al \ di-ˈnī(-ə)l , dē- \

Definition of denial

1 :refusal to satisfy a request or desire

the denial of privileges

2 a (1) :refusal to admit the truth or reality of something (such as a statement or charge)

their denial of the divine right of kings

(2) :assertion that an allegation is false

her denial that she was involved

b :refusal to acknowledge a person or a thing :disavowal

his denial of his youngest son

3 law :the opposing by the defendant of an allegation (see allegation 2) of the opposite party in a lawsuit

their denial of the plaintiff's allegations

4 :self-denial

… a man in denial about his receding hairline.
—Playboy

5 logic :negation 1b

6 psychology :a defense mechanism in which confrontation with a personal problem or with reality is avoided by denying the existence of the problem or reality

— in denial

:refusing to admit the truth or reality of something unpleasant

a patient in denial about his health problems

See denial defined for English-language learners

See denial defined for kids

Examples of denial in a Sentence

She issued a flat denial of the charges made against her.
The accusations have met with angry denials from school officials.
The city government has been heavily criticized for its denial of the seriousness of the situation.
The hardest part of the punishment was the denial of his right to see his children.
The group is protesting the denial of voting rights to convicted felons.
The lawyers were disappointed by the court's denial of their motion to dismiss the case.

Recent Examples of denial from the Web

Some students may be in denial, but the first day of school for the 2017-2018 school year is just around the corner.

— allison ross, The Courier-Journal, "When is the first day of school for your child? Check out Kentuckiana school start dates," 19 July 2017
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin also declined to say whether Trump accepted Putin’s denial.

— jill colvin, The Seattle Times, "Trump says he pressed Putin on elections, time to move on," 10 July 2017
But aversion arising from fear is a form of denial, too.

— charles p. pierce, Esquire, "It's No Exaggeration to Say Human Civilization Is at Stake," 10 July 2017
Whatever exactly happened at the meeting between Trump and Putin, the president’s Sunday morning Twitter storm confirms: Trump has accepted Putin’s denials as the final word on the matter.

— david frum, The Atlantic, "Will Congress Hold Russia Accountable for the Behavior Trump Excuses?," 9 July 2017
The next day, White House chief of staff Reince Priebus offered the more explicit denial that McMaster and Mnuchin wouldn’t.

— chas danner, Daily Intelligencer, "Trump Wants to Work with Russia to Prevent Future Election Meddling," 9 July 2017
In the United States, by contrast, people from those nations have among the highest asylum denial rates — about 80 percent — according to an analysis by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University.

— Washington Post, "More families fleeing Central America resettling in Mexico," 5 July 2017
Darvish wasn’t in a state of denial after facing the media, despite his claims that bad luck did him in more than anything else.

— jeff wilson, star-telegram, "Rangers Reaction: Offense needed to be looking in other dugout," 5 July 2017
The measure approved is designed to enforce the country's existing limits on speech, including the long-standing ban on Holocaust denial.

— frank jordans, Jewish Journal, "Germany passes law against online hate speech," 3 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'denial.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of denial

see deny

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First Known Use: 1528

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denial Synonyms

Synonyms

declination, disallowance, nay, no, nonacceptance, refusal, rejection, turndown

Antonyms

allowance, approval, grant, OK (or okay)

Related Words

rebuff, repudiation, repulse, spurn; negative; ban, injunction, veto; deterrence, discouragement, repression, suppression

Near Antonyms

acceptance, accession, acquiescence, agreement, assent, authorization, clearance, concurrence, consent, leave, license (or licence), permission, sanction, sufferance; imprimatur, seal, signature, stamp

DENIAL Defined for English Language Learners

denial

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noun

Definition of denial for English Language Learners

: a statement saying that something is not true or real : a statement in which someone denies something
psychology : a condition in which someone will not admit that something sad, painful, etc., is true or real
: the act of not allowing someone to have something

DENIAL Defined for Kids

denial

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noun de·ni·al \ di-ˈnī-əl \

Definition of denial for Students

1 :a refusal to give or agree to something asked for

a denial of the request

2 :a refusal to admit the truth of a statement

a denial of the accusation

3 :a refusal to accept or believe in someone or something He repeated his denial of the existence of ghosts.

4 :a cutting down or limiting

a denial of his appetite

Medical Dictionary

denial

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noun de·ni·al \ di-ˈnī(-ə)l \

medical Definition of denial

:a psychological defense mechanism in which confrontation with a personal problem or with reality is avoided by denying the existence of the problem or reality

Law Dictionary

denial

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noun de·ni·al \ di-ˈnī-əl \

legal Definition of denial

1 :refusal to grant or allow something

denial of due process

denial of a motion

2 a :an assertion that an allegation is false

b :a defense asserting that an opposing party's allegations are false — compare affirmative defense at defense 2a, traverse

Note: Under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, allegations that are not denied are taken as admitted, and a statement that a party has insufficient knowledge or information to form a belief as to the truth of an allegation is taken as a denial. A denial must sufficiently state which allegations or parts of allegations are being denied.

— argumentative denial \ˌär-gyə-ˈmen-tə-tiv-\

:a denial that asserts facts inconsistent with an allegation made by an adverse party

— general denial

1 :a denial of all the allegations in a complaint

2 :a denial of all the allegations of a particular paragraph or group of paragraphs in a complaint

— specific denial

1 :general denial in this entry

2 :a denial of parts of an allegation in a complaint

Learn More about denial

See words that rhyme with denial Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for denial Spanish Central: Translation of denial Nglish: Translation of denial for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of denial for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about denial

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Origin and Etymology of denial

denial Synonyms

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DENIAL Defined for English Language Learners

denial

Definition of denial for English Language Learners

DENIAL Defined for Kids

denial

Definition of denial for Students

Medical Dictionary

denial

medical Definition of denial

Law Dictionary

denial

legal Definition of denial

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