APOSTATIZE Synonyms: 25 Similar and Opposite Words

apostatize

verb

Definition of apostatize

as in to renounce

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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 apostatize The conundrum is one that has nothing to do with Rodrigues’ decision whether to lay down his life, but with his reluctance to apostatize, even in the face of others’ deaths. — Michael O'Sullivan, The Denver Post, 6 Jan. 2017 In one of the more powerful sequences, three older men are hung from crosses positioned deep in the ocean’s waters — the thrashing waves killing them slowly for their refusal to apostatize. — Lindsey Bahr, Orange County Register, 6 Jan. 2017

Recent Examples of Synonyms for apostatize

Verb

China has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control.

— Reuters, NBC news, 5 Aug. 2026
The 2019 Business Roundtable statement renouncing MSV changed rhetoric.

— Steve Denning, Forbes.com, 3 Aug. 2026

Definition of renounce

Verb

Not play-act, but do the real work, make the hard and noble choices, not forsake his vows but live by them.

— Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 27 July 2026
Ultimately, that comeback success was enough to get a show that the Emmys had previously forsaken back on their radar, cementing its return to form.

— Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 8 July 2026

Definition of forsake

Verb

Those local leaders who came in as Democrats five, six, seven years ago wanted to make shoplifting okay, kept the schools closed too long, they got repudiated by voters.

— ABC News, ABC News, 9 Aug. 2026
That agreement soon unravelled with Trump making new conditions in public and the Saudis repudiating them.

— Melik Kaylan, Forbes.com, 28 July 2026

Definition of repudiate

Verb

To pull that off, Daunt abandoned an old business model whereby publishers gave Barnes & Noble a discount for carrying the same books at all its stores and positioning them in the same place for the same amount of time.

— Phil Wahba, Fortune, 4 Aug. 2026
Like him, many other residents of the sizable tent community off Fish Hatchery Road have no plans to abandon their dwellings for a first-come, first-serve downtown shelter bed that may not be available the next night.

— Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 4 Aug. 2026

Definition of abandon

Verb

Their royal wedding took place in Copenhagen on May 14, 2004, and Frederik and Mary were crowned King and Queen of Denmark in January 2024, after Margrethe abdicated the throne after 52 years, citing health concerns.

— Diana Pearl, PEOPLE, 31 July 2026
Owners who abdicate spend their days reading headlines and waiting for the conditions to feel right.

— Jason Sisneros, Forbes.com, 21 July 2026

Definition of abdicate

Verb

Hong Kong's stablecoin licensing further illustrates this, approving only HKD tokens while publicly disowning any CNH stablecoin claims.

— Zennon Kapron, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
The platforms that helped usher in the generative AI boom are now trying to clean up the mess without disowning the technology behind it.

— Angela Yang, NBC news, 8 Aug. 2026

Definition of disown

Browse Nearby Words

apostates

apostatize

apostatized

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Style

“Apostatize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/apostatize. Accessed 11 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of apostatize

verb

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