Synonym Chooser

How does the verb annul differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of annul are abrogate, invalidate, negate, and nullify. While all these words mean "to deprive of effective or continued existence," annul suggests making ineffective or nonexistent often by legal or official action.

the treaty annuls all previous agreements

How do abrogate and annul relate to one another?

Abrogate is like annul but more definitely implies a legal or official act.

a law to abrogate trading privileges

Where would invalidate be a reasonable alternative to annul?

While in some cases nearly identical to annul, invalidate implies making something powerless or unacceptable by declaration of its logical or moral or legal unsoundness.

the court invalidated the statute

When is it sensible to use negate instead of annul?

The words negate and annul can be used in similar contexts, but negate implies the destruction or canceling out of each of two things by the other.

the arguments negate each other

When might nullify be a better fit than annul?

While the synonyms nullify and annul are close in meaning, nullify implies counteracting completely the force, effectiveness, or value of something.

a penalty nullified the touchdown

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of annul Spain, after months of signaling, last week annulled hundreds of millions worth of orders for battlefield weapons made by Israeli companies. Nic Robertson, CNN Money, 22 Sep. 2025 After the results were announced, hundreds of thousands of demonstrators took the streets of the capital, Tbilisi, demanding the results be annulled – and more than 300 days later, demonstrations continue. Leila Fadel, NPR, 10 Sep. 2025 Chakwera only won after an unprecedented election rerun as the first polls were annulled by the country’s top court. Charles Pensulo, semafor.com, 10 Sep. 2025 Ross Tritt, Boerner’s representative, was asked about Boerner’s position on Senate Bill 79, which, if passed, would annul the city’s 30-foot height limit for buildings within a half-mile of public transit. Steven Mihailovich, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for annul
Recent Examples of Synonyms for annul
Verb
  • If auto insurance with one carrier is more expensive than with another, a discount may not offset the difference.
    Liz Knueven, CNBC, 10 Nov. 2025
  • These scenes were designed for the average young viewer to enjoy, yet their appeal was offset by their unattainability.
    Kim Hew-Low, The Atlantic, 10 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • For more than 100 years, enslaved people lived and labored in the colonies, but after the Revolutionary War, northern states eventually abolished most forms of enslavement by the early 1800s, led by Vermont in 1777.
    Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 10 Nov. 2025
  • Trump has spent the last week-plus pressuring Republicans to abolish the filibuster to end the government shutdown, now the longest in history, through a simple majority vote in the Senate.
    Christian Datoc, The Washington Examiner, 5 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • This was something that communism corrected to a certain degree, but not really.
    Fiction Non Fiction, Literary Hub, 6 Nov. 2025
  • Fitzpatrick ordered prosecutors to immediately correct that.
    Gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • The courthouse is named after Osvaldo Soto, a Cuban-American lawyer who led the fight in the 1980s to repeal the county’s English-only ordinance that, among other things, stopped clerks from conducting courthouse weddings in Spanish.
    Douglas Hanks November 10, Miami Herald, 10 Nov. 2025
  • The Boise City Council plans to repeal the city ordinance that allows a disorderly conduct misdemeanor charge for loitering on private property, according to a settlement agreement obtained by the Idaho Statesman.
    Alex Brizee, Idaho Statesman, 10 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • Within a few short years, all effective sources of opposition were neutralized in Hungary.
    Kim Lane Scheppele, Time, 6 Nov. 2025
  • Ukraine’s battle against Russia’s relentless drone assaults has found a powerful counter in the STING interceptor drone, a compact, fast, and cost-effective weapon designed to neutralize enemy UAVs mid-air.
    Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 6 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • While it's left some passengers making backup plans and reserving rental cars, the flights canceled Friday represented just a small portion of overall flights nationwide.
    JOSH FUNK, Arkansas Online, 8 Nov. 2025
  • If your flight is canceled or significantly delayed due to the cuts, you’re legally entitled to a cash refund, not just some future credit.
    The Kim Komando Show, FOXNews.com, 8 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • The vehicle overturned and McClure was ejected from it.
    Daniel McFadin, Arkansas Online, 10 Nov. 2025
  • The justices are also deciding whether to overturn restrictions on coordinated spending between parties and candidates, whether to curtail protections against racial discrimination in voting, and when candidates can contest an Illinois election law similar to Mississippi’s.
    Maureen Groppe, USA Today, 10 Nov. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Annul.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/annul. Accessed 17 Nov. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on annul

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