1
as in refusal
an unwillingness to grant something asked for
our supervisor's denial of unpaid personal leave got mixed reactions from the staff
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in rejection
a refusal to confirm the truth of a statement
the senator issued a flat denial of the accusation against her
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of denial
APIs, clearinghouse integrations, denial pattern analysis.
—
Urvish Parikh, Forbes.com, 15 May 2026
Clay Parikh, a cybersecurity expert from Alabama, spent years as a bit player in the world of election denial.
—Shane Harris, The Atlantic, 14 May 2026
Military significance Sea mines remain a potent option to employ a sea-denial strategy and naval blockades as witnessed in the recent Strait of Hormuz crisis.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 14 May 2026
Permit denials helped to enforce the state’s wastewater mandates.
—Nicole Van Lier, The Conversation, 13 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for denial
Urvish Parikh, Forbes.com, 15 May 2026
Clay Parikh, a cybersecurity expert from Alabama, spent years as a bit player in the world of election denial.
—Shane Harris, The Atlantic, 14 May 2026
Military significance Sea mines remain a potent option to employ a sea-denial strategy and naval blockades as witnessed in the recent Strait of Hormuz crisis.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 14 May 2026
Permit denials helped to enforce the state’s wastewater mandates.
—Nicole Van Lier, The Conversation, 13 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for denial
Recent Examples of Synonyms for denial
Noun
-
But Israel tops all concerns for some leftists, so Greene’s reversal on the issue is enough to win their support, and AOC’s refusal to embrace her is seen as a counterproductive purity test.—
Arash Azizi,
The Atlantic,
22 May 2026
-
In April, the museum turned down the Guggenheim Bilbao’s request to borrow Pablo Picasso’s Guernica, one of the key jewels in its collection, prompting Basque officials to seek meetings with Spain’s culture minister, Ernest Urtasun, to determine whether the refusal could be overridden.—
News Desk,
Artforum,
22 May 2026
Noun
-
The part purportedly written by Vazquez mentions years of ridicule and rejection — one of the few full sentences of his written in all caps.—
Teri Figueroa,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
23 May 2026
-
Republicans hailed the rejection of the gas tax increase after it was trounced by voters.—
Claire Rush,
Fortune,
23 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Denial.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/denial. Accessed 24 May. 2026.
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