REFUSE Synonyms: 225 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How is the word 'refuse' different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of refuse are decline , reject , repudiate , and spurn . While all these words mean "to turn away by not accepting, receiving, or considering," refuse suggests more positiveness or ungraciousness and often implies the denial of something asked for. // refused to lend them the money

Q: In what contexts can 'decline' take the place of 'refuse'?

In some situations, the words decline and refuse are roughly equivalent. However, decline often implies courteous refusal especially of offers or invitations. // declined his party's nomination

Q: When is 'reject' a more appropriate choice than 'refuse'?

The synonyms reject and refuse are sometimes interchangeable, but reject implies a peremptory refusal by sending away or discarding. // rejected the manuscript as unpublishable

Q: When can 'repudiate' be used instead of 'refuse'?

The words repudiate and refuse can be used in similar contexts, but repudiate implies a casting off or disowning as untrue, unauthorized, or unworthy of acceptance. // teenagers who repudiate the values of their parents

Q: When could 'spurn' be used to replace 'refuse'?

Although the words spurn and refuse have much in common, spurn stresses contempt or disdain in rejection or repudiation. // spurned his overtures of friendship

refuse 1 of 3

verb

ri-ˈfyüz

Definition of refuse

as in to deny

to be unwilling to grant the reclusive movie star usually refuses requests for interviews

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to reject

to show unwillingness to accept, do, engage in, or agree to she refused the award, citing the hard work of others who deserved the recognition more than she did

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

refuse

2 of 3

noun

ˈre-ˌfyüs

as in garbage

discarded or useless material refuse had littered the playground until our volunteer group cleaned it up

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

refuse

3 of 3

adjective

as in discarded

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

Synonym Chooser

How is the word refuse different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of refuse are decline, reject, repudiate, and spurn. While all these words mean "to turn away by not accepting, receiving, or considering," refuse suggests more positiveness or ungraciousness and often implies the denial of something asked for.

refused to lend them the money

In what contexts can decline take the place of refuse?

In some situations, the words decline and refuse are roughly equivalent. However, decline often implies courteous refusal especially of offers or invitations.

declined his party's nomination

When is reject a more appropriate choice than refuse?

The synonyms reject and refuse are sometimes interchangeable, but reject implies a peremptory refusal by sending away or discarding.

rejected the manuscript as unpublishable

When can repudiate be used instead of refuse?

The words repudiate and refuse can be used in similar contexts, but repudiate implies a casting off or disowning as untrue, unauthorized, or unworthy of acceptance.

teenagers who repudiate the values of their parents

When could spurn be used to replace refuse?

Although the words spurn and refuse have much in common, spurn stresses contempt or disdain in rejection or repudiation.

spurned his overtures of friendship

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 refuse

Verb

Because the indefensible part is that, in refusing to pay the exorbitant but fully understood price to land LeBron, the Warriors didn’t just miss out on the King. — Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 6 July 2026 Montalvo was on the phone with StubHub up until an hour before kick-off after StubHub abruptly notified Montalvo that the seller could not deliver the tickets and refused to provide comparable replacements due to soaring prices, reported the BBC. — Natassia Paloma, USA Today, 6 July 2026

Noun

Humanity has littered the sky with the refuse of fossil fuel use, releasing enough CO2 to change the planet’s climate. — ArsTechnica, 8 June 2026 Hushed and tense, the video pans slowly around the small room, hesitating over the sink filled with refuse and beer cans where Bob Stewart’s gun was said to have been discovered. — J.c. Hallman, Oklahoman, 28 Apr. 2026

Adjective

Officials with the city’s Bureau of Sanitation said the existing trash fees have not been generating enough money to cover the true cost of refuse collection. — David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2025 Cement mixers, roll-off and dump trucks, which all share a common architecture, will be built first, followed by refuse trucks and terminal tractors. — Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 7 Dec. 2023 See All Example Sentences for refuse

Recent Examples of Synonyms for refuse

Verb

Another was well denied by Major League Soccer goalkeeper Matt Freese.

— Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 July 2026
Dylan’s tour team denied all press access requests, in keeping with his longstanding refusal to permit media photography.

— Jared Kaufman, Twin Cities, 7 July 2026

Definition of deny

Verb

Critics see it as another attempt to breathe life into claims that courts, investigators and election officials have repeatedly rejected — and another corrosive attempt to undermine faith in the state’s vote.

— Adam Beam, AJC.com, 6 July 2026
Questioning, if not rejecting, established Christian doctrine, Ahab also comes to regard Moby Dick as the outward and visible sign, the physical embodiment of the indifference or, worse, utter malignity inherent in the universe.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 July 2026

Definition of reject

Noun

Instead, rival parties united in dismissing his actions as a stunt, leaving his only opponent to be a garbage-can wearing comedian whose policies include forcing rule-breaking cyclists to ride unicycles.

— Billy Stockwell, CNN Money, 9 July 2026
Using a plastic bag to collect the soil and disposing of it in the garbage — not green yard waste bins — will help to reduce the spread of airborne chemicals.

— Christopher Buchanan, Los Angeles Times, 8 July 2026

Definition of garbage

Verb

Bogdanos declined the cash, which is instead being donated to nonprofits of his choosing.

— Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 9 July 2026
Even as remote work has declined from its pandemic highs, the data shows nearly 22% of workers still worked at least partly from home in 2025, only 1 percentage point less than the number who partly worked from home during the year prior.

— Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 9 July 2026

Definition of decline

Verb

Instead of going home that night, Wilber found himself back in bed 23 of the detention center — his bond denied — trying to ignore a nasty odor permeating his 14-person cell.

— Itzel Luna, Los Angeles Times, 10 July 2026
Kennedy plans to ignore such noise in the lead-up to the draft.

— Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 9 July 2026

Definition of ignore

Noun

Last week, a group of about 50 residents rallied a block away from the warehouse and demanded the company clean up the debris from the fire and then pack up and leave.

— Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 10 July 2026
Still others tend the fleet already in orbit, refueling, relocating, and extending the life of satellites, and clearing the debris that crowded orbits leave behind.

— Charlotte Kiang, Forbes.com, 9 July 2026

Definition of debris

Adjective

Recycling and anti-waste advocates counter that regulators weakened the law with exemptions and carve-outs that could undermine its environmental goals.

— Bloomberg, Mercury News, 1 June 2026
Shards of glass and ceramic, rusted metal, medical and bio-waste, syringes, cracked circuit boards, and broken electronics protruded everywhere.

— CNN Money, CNN Money, 15 Apr. 2026

Definition of waste

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“Refuse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/refuse. Accessed 10 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of refuse

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adjective

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