nays

noun

plural of nay
1
as in noes
a vote or decision against something when the votes were tallied, it was 241 yeas and 54 nays

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in refusals
an unwillingness to grant something asked for gave a resounding nay to the request for a mixed-company camping trip

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 nays And on July 2, after the arrival of British forces in New York lent the proceedings new urgency, Congress did, in fact, declare independence—with a vote of 12 yeas, 0 nays, and 1 abstention. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 1 July 2026 With Cornyn not on the floor, the vote for more than 25 minutes was stuck at 56 ayes and 40 nays, with three other GOP senators, Rick Scott of Florida, Wisconsin’s Ron Johnson and Mike Lee of Utah, not voting, for unclear reasons. — Emily Wilkins,dan Mangan, CNBC, 10 Nov. 2025 Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced the decision following an endorsement from the Chamber of Deputies and a Senate vote that saw 76 ayes, five nays and 35 abstentions. — Kate Nishimura, Sourcing Journal, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nays
  1. noes
  2. refusals
  3. vetoes
  4. rejections
  5. denials
Noun
  • While that effort went down with a wider margin, 84 nos and 17 yeses, a dozen Republicans supported it, revealing the extent of unease over the issue within the Senate GOP conference.
    — Zachary Schermele, USA Today, 4 June 2026
  • On the framework amendment, there were 12 Republican noes.
    — Hailey Bullis, The Washington Examiner, 19 Apr. 2026
Definition of noes
Noun
  • Some shared their own workarounds for the AI’s refusals — which included just using another model, like Claude or Gemini.
    — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 29 July 2026
  • The models ran with reduced cyber refusals, and the evaluation omitted the production classifiers that normally block high-risk cyber activity.
    — Janakiram MSV, Forbes.com, 27 July 2026
Definition of refusals
Noun
  • Their responsibilities include passing bills, setting levels for state spending, raising and lowering taxes and voting to uphold or override vetoes.
    — The Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 5 Aug. 2026
  • The president has endorsed state Senate President Ty Masterson, who sometimes overrode Kelly’s vetoes, for the GOP nomination.
    — David Weigel, semafor.com, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of vetoes
Noun
  • Though Flock has its cameras in over 5,000 US cities as of July 2026, the rise in rejections at the municipal level comes amidst a tidal wave of outrage around issues of privacy and civil rights.
    — Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 6 Aug. 2026
  • But immigration experts and lawyers said the move will likely be used to streamline asylum rejections and subsequent deportations.
    — Mathew Miranda, Sacbee.com, 28 July 2026
Definition of rejections
Noun
  • Stricter and more expansive work requirements increase SNAP benefit denials and reduce the number of people who get benefits, including among women who may become pregnant.
    — Amelia B. Finaret, The Conversation, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Those denials are on the record, but what is established is that vulnerability is real and the infrastructure was operated by a person whose firms had documented ties to the security service.
    — Susie Violet Ward, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026
Definition of denials

Browse Nearby Words

nay
nays
naysayer
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Nays.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nays. Accessed 12 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on nays

Nglish: Translation of nays for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of gnomic

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

'Gaslighting,' 'Woke,' 'Democracy,' and Other Top Lookups
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All