1
as in to refute
to prove to be false
a Web site that assiduously debunks urban legends
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to expose
to reveal the true nature of
the investigative reporter easily debunked the charlatan's claims of clairvoyance
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of debunk
But Steve Wade, a senior director of operations and procurement at ARS, debunks that myth.
—
Alora Bopray, USA Today, 2 June 2026
Her description of the deceased Alex Pretti brandishing a gun that threatened the lives of Border Patrol officers was quickly debunked, with several videos showing how he was killed despite posing no threat.
—Sheldon Jacobson, Twin Cities, 2 June 2026
Those rumors were promptly debunked, however.
—Emma Banks, InStyle, 29 May 2026
Now, the Chinese team debunked those beliefs after spotting tiny organisms living on rocky surfaces across multiple Pacific trenches.
—Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 28 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for debunk
Alora Bopray, USA Today, 2 June 2026
Her description of the deceased Alex Pretti brandishing a gun that threatened the lives of Border Patrol officers was quickly debunked, with several videos showing how he was killed despite posing no threat.
—Sheldon Jacobson, Twin Cities, 2 June 2026
Those rumors were promptly debunked, however.
—Emma Banks, InStyle, 29 May 2026
Now, the Chinese team debunked those beliefs after spotting tiny organisms living on rocky surfaces across multiple Pacific trenches.
—Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 28 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for debunk
Recent Examples of Synonyms for debunk
Verb
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California officials, including Secretary of State Shirley Weber, have repeatedly refuted claims of fraud and, in fact, have defended the state’s slower process as critical to ensuring the counts are accurate.—
Linh Tat,
Daily News,
9 June 2026
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At trial, defense lawyer Bob Varga refuted the accusation, noting there was no bodycam footage of the incident.—
Meredith Colias-Pete,
Chicago Tribune,
5 June 2026
Verb
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The novel painfully exposes the ruthless mistreatment and exploitation of both racehorses and humans in this era and tracks the ripples of that trauma through time.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 June 2026
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The fight makes its way to the penthouse, exposing Lestat as a real live vampire to his bandmates, who, up until now, thought the vampire thing was an elaborate bit.—
Rebecca Alter,
Vulture,
8 June 2026
Verb
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The timing of the declaration comes two weeks after OpenAI publicized one of its AI models as having disproved an 80-year-old mathematical conjecture in geometry.—
Jeremy Hsu,
ArsTechnica,
2 June 2026
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There are a number of myths and legends surrounding Wilimowski, both good and bad, that are hard to verify or disprove.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
1 June 2026
Verb
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But when one of them is murdered, private investigator Aubrey Merritt and her assistant Olivia Blunt must unravel decades of secrets and fractured loyalties to uncover the killer.—
Kait Hanson,
Southern Living,
13 June 2026
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Gardens and more Along with the hypogeum, researchers also uncovered elaborate gardens that once surrounded the Palazzo.—
Maria Mocerino,
Interesting Engineering,
13 June 2026
Verb
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If anything, they’ve been used to discredit her.—
Zachary Fine,
New Yorker,
8 June 2026
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Defense attorney Tom Mesereau was an expert at discrediting witnesses, subjects told the filmmakers, but certain key witnesses, like Janet Arvizo, struggled to connect with the jury on their own.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
5 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Debunk.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/debunk. Accessed 15 Jun. 2026.
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