discountenance

1 of 2

verb

dis·​coun·​te·​nance di-ˈskau̇n-tə-nən(t)s 

-ˈskau̇nt-nən(t)s

discountenanced; discountenancing; discountenances

transitive verb

1

: abash, disconcert

2

: to look with disfavor on : discourage by evidence of disapproval

discountenanced all bellicose statements

discountenance

2 of 2

noun

: disapprobation, disfavor

Synonyms

Verb

• deprecate
• disapprove (of)
• disesteem
• disfavor
• dislike
• frown (on or upon)
• mislike
• reprove
• tsk-tsk
• tut (over or about)
• tut-tut (over or about)

Noun

• deprecation
• disapprobation
• disapproval
• disesteem
• disfavor
• dislike
• displeasure

Examples of discountenance in a Sentence

Verb

a social philosopher who discountenanced all programs for helping the needy, claiming that society should encourage survival of the fittest

the political party was discountenanced by the actions of a few of its overly zealous members

Noun

made known his long-standing discountenance of any form of religious belief

Word History

First Known Use

Verb

1584, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1579, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

discountenance

verb

dis·​coun·​te·​nance

dis-ˈkau̇nt-ᵊn-ən(t)s,

-ˈkau̇nt-nən(t)s

1

: embarrass sense 1, disconcert sense 2

2

: to look with disfavor on