1
as in denying
to declare not to be true
he steadfastly disowned that he was having an affair
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in refusing
to refuse to acknowledge as one's own or as one's responsibility
the dictatorial father angrily disowned his rebellious son
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of disowning
The pastor approaches the line without fully disenchanting; a magician drawing attention to the trick without disowning its power.
—
Sam Kestenbaum, Vulture, 2 Jan. 2026
Emails published on the Mail on Sunday revealed Ferguson apologized to Epstein weeks after publicly disowning him, back in 2011.
—Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 30 Nov. 2025
Extended family members of White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller are disowning him, according to his cousin.
—Jordan King, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Oct. 2025
Maximum Overdrive, the only movie that King directed, is eligible… but King himself joined the chorus of harsh critics, disowning it and never again returning to the director’s chair .
—James Grebey, Time, 12 Sep. 2025
Sam Kestenbaum, Vulture, 2 Jan. 2026
Emails published on the Mail on Sunday revealed Ferguson apologized to Epstein weeks after publicly disowning him, back in 2011.
—Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 30 Nov. 2025
Extended family members of White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller are disowning him, according to his cousin.
—Jordan King, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Oct. 2025
Maximum Overdrive, the only movie that King directed, is eligible… but King himself joined the chorus of harsh critics, disowning it and never again returning to the director’s chair .
—James Grebey, Time, 12 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for disowning
Verb
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Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell released a video statement on Sunday night denying criminal wrongdoing shortly after the Department of Justice opened an investigation into him.—
Zach LaChance,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Jan. 2026
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The vaccine misinformation advanced by the president and his science-denying Secretary of Health and Human Services is taking its toll on vaccination rates.—
Mary Ellen Klas,
Twin Cities,
11 Jan. 2026
Verb
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While in Jamaica, the Ramírez boys were sent to a very conservative private school to learn English and were punished for refusing to sing the British national anthem in morning assembly.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
16 Jan. 2026
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Much of it explodes, though; one false post of Nix refusing to wear a rainbow armband has over 2,300 reactions.—
Luca Evans,
Denver Post,
15 Jan. 2026
Verb
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But a jury apparently disagreed, convicting Amiri of a civil rights violation that relied heavily on Manly-Williams’ testimony and rejecting all other charges, including conspiracy to violate civil rights.—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
12 Jan. 2026
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Talarico represents the Democrats who believe that winning is possible by rejecting rather than emulating the president’s least flattering qualities.—
Colin Pascal,
Baltimore Sun,
12 Jan. 2026
Verb
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However, an insider close to Nicola is refuting that account.—
Gillian Telling,
PEOPLE,
13 Jan. 2026
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According to the Department of Industrial Relations, the violations were issued without proper internal documentation, failed to consider materials previously submitted by the company refuting the violations, and should not have been sent.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
12 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Disowning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disowning. Accessed 23 Jan. 2026.
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