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reject

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noun

1
as in outcast
one who is cast out or rejected by society was the school reject as a child and has low self-esteem even today

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
as in discard
something separated from a group or lot for not being as good as the others that apple has a mushy spot on it, so it's a reject

Synonyms & Similar Words

Synonym Chooser

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

Some common synonyms of reject are decline, refuse, repudiate, and spurn. While all these words mean "to turn away by not accepting, receiving, or considering," reject implies a peremptory refusal by sending away or discarding.

rejected the manuscript as unpublishable

When might decline be a better fit than reject?

While in some cases nearly identical to reject, decline often implies courteous refusal especially of offers or invitations.

declined his party's nomination

When would refuse be a good substitute for reject?

The words refuse and reject are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, refuse suggests more positiveness or ungraciousness and often implies the denial of something asked for.

refused to lend them the money

When could repudiate be used to replace reject?

The meanings of repudiate and reject largely overlap; however, repudiate implies a casting off or disowning as untrue, unauthorized, or unworthy of acceptance.

teenagers who repudiate the values of their parents

When is it sensible to use spurn instead of reject?

Although the words spurn and reject 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 reject
Verb
Out of the nine offers, USC, Penn, Brown University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have rejected the proposal. Taylor Romine, CNN Money, 16 Oct. 2025 The growth of artificial intelligence has been polarizing; some people have rejected it, and others have embraced it. Armon Sadler, VIBE.com, 16 Oct. 2025
Noun
Sure, there’s a scene in the series premiere in which Bart gets a real tattoo—but the story ends sweetly, with the family adopting a greyhound track reject named Santa’s Little Helper. Alan Siegel, The Atlantic, 11 June 2025 This man shows up dressed up like a Pentecostal deacon’s son headed to the 2018 NBA draft, only to end up a fifth-round reject. Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 24 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for reject
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reject
Verb
  • During one heated exchange, immigration agents who did not want to be captured on body camera footage refused to invite FBI agents along for an arrest operation, one of the sources said.
    Josh Campbell, CNN Money, 16 Oct. 2025
  • According to Film Workers for Palestine, the pledge was inspired by Filmmakers United Against Apartheid, a group founded by high-profile directors such as Jonathan Demme and Martin Scorsese, which demanded that the film industry refuse to distribute work in South Africa.
    Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 16 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Upon the basis of these findings, Congress declares that the constitutional right of citizens to vote is denied or abridged in some areas by the requirement of the payment of a poll tax as a precondition to voting.
    JSTOR Daily, JSTOR Daily, 17 Oct. 2025
  • The administration says the white South African farmers face discrimination and violence in South Africa, which the country’s government denies.
    Khaleda Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • In the trailer, it is shown that if you are caught indulging in a brief moment of pleasure, you are packed away into a human-sized cardboard box and quickly discarded into a heap of other passionate offenders.
    Destiny Jackson, Deadline, 17 Oct. 2025
  • The foods were voluntarily discarded.
    Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 17 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Hoyer declined to speculate on whether the major-league payroll would receive a boost after Wrigley Field hosted two playoff rounds.
    Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
  • The sentiment has affected Gulf IPOs, which are expected to decline to their lowest level since 2021.
    Matthew Martin, semafor.com, 16 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • The Twits don’t have a change of heart and end up as outcasts once more, but the film frames Beesha’s mercy toward them in a positive light.
    Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 17 Oct. 2025
  • But inhabiting this patchwork outcast has sparked a creative resurgence (and rave reviews) for the 28-year-old Australian star, plus some real Oscar buzz.
    Brian Truitt, USA Today, 14 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • One day, doctors could produce blood fully compatible with a patient’s body, avoiding rejection risks.
    Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 14 Oct. 2025
  • Other university leaders are saying MIT's rejection of the deal opens the door for other institutions to make the same choice, rather than agree to deals like some of the Ivies have.
    Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The couple has publicly refuted those claims, affirming the authenticity of their partnership.
    Amanda Castro, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Oct. 2025
  • Michaels took to her Instagram days after the release of Fit for TV to post a series of screenshots of text chains, email threads, and other pieces of documentation refuting or otherwise complicating each claim leveled at her.
    Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • With exactly 11 minutes remaining, Walker dumped a screen pass off to O’Brien.
    Brendan Connelly, Boston Herald, 17 Oct. 2025
  • In some cases, a major winter storm will dump heavy snow in northern areas, while the South contends with a springlike severe storm threat from the same system.
    Chris Dolce, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Reject.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reject. Accessed 20 Oct. 2025.

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