spurn

1 of 2

verb

ˈspərn 

spurned; spurning; spurns

transitive verb

1

: to reject with disdain or contempt : scorn

spurned their offer

2

: to tread sharply or heavily upon : trample

intransitive verb

1

archaic : to reject something disdainfully

2

obsolete

a

: stumble

b

: kick sense 1a

spurner noun

spurn

2 of 2

noun

1

a

: disdainful rejection

b

: contemptuous treatment

2

a

: kick sense 1a

b

obsolete : stumble

Synonyms of spurn

Verb

• refuse
• reject
• decline

Choose the Right Synonym for spurn

decline, refuse, reject, repudiate, spurn mean to turn away by not accepting, receiving, or considering.

decline often implies courteous refusal especially of offers or invitations.

declined his party's nomination

refuse suggests more positiveness or ungraciousness and often implies the denial of something asked for.

refused to lend them the money

reject implies a peremptory refusal by sending away or discarding.

rejected the manuscript as unpublishable

repudiate implies a casting off or disowning as untrue, unauthorized, or unworthy of acceptance.

teenagers who repudiate the values of their parents

spurn stresses contempt or disdain in rejection or repudiation.

spurned his overtures of friendship

Examples of spurn in a Sentence

Verb

fiercely independent, the elderly couple spurned all offers of financial help

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

The application will test an agency that has promised to speed new gene-editing treatments to patients but has recently come under scrutiny from regulators, executives, and advocates for spurning a string of gene therapies for neurological diseases. —Jason Mast, STAT, 3 Mar. 2026

Mizrahi says that appearance, combined with growing public mistrust in government and medicine, convinced some patients to spurn his advice and forgo traditional cancer treatment, putting their faith instead in ivermectin. —Yuki Noguchi, NPR, 2 Mar. 2026

Leeds kept pushing, and kept winning the ball back, but for a good half-hour, City kept trying regardless, spurning the opportunity to go long to Antoine Semenyo, who looks a capable target man, but is no Haaland (nobody is). —Sam Lee, New York Times, 2 Mar. 2026

The mystery ingredient that makes the camera love some actors and spurn others is a terror. —Richard Brody, New Yorker, 25 Feb. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Old English spurnan; akin to Old High German spurnan to kick, Latin spernere to spurn, Greek spairein to quiver

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 2a

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2a

Rhymes for spurn

• berne
• burn
• churn
• dern
• earn
• erne
• fern
• hern
• hirn
• learn
• morne
• quern

Kids Definition

spurn

verb

ˈspərn

: to reject or thrust aside with scorn

spurner noun