as in refused
to show unwillingness to accept, do, engage in, or agree to
I'm afraid that I will have to turn down your invitation
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Recent Examples of turned down
Downtown residents have been complaining to the city commission that the traffic and noise are unbearable and want the volume turned down.
—
Steve Maugeri, CBS News, 27 Mar. 2026
That gig looked like a potential sign where Owen might be going after leaving Grey Sloan in the finale but, to Teddy’s relief, Owen turned down the offer (at least for now), leaving us guessing how the two characters would be written off.
—Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 26 Mar. 2026
The Baltimore Ravens, who had entered the challenge and won, turned down Musk’s offer after initial meetings with the company.
—Lora Kolodny, CNBC, 26 Mar. 2026
No one has turned down a request to be interviewed, and many episodes are already completed.
—Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 25 Mar. 2026
Curvelo, 25, turned down the offer twice, in fact.
—Evan Grant, Dallas Morning News, 18 Mar. 2026
Subverting the expectations sown by Harry’s House, his 2022 Grammy winner, the 32-year-old pop idol has turned down his star power to create a more sensory musical experience.
—The Week Us, TheWeek, 18 Mar. 2026
Had they been excluded from the NCAA field, those practices would have been ceremonial in nature because methinks the school would have turned down an invite to the NIT.
—Cedric Golden, Austin American Statesman, 16 Mar. 2026
Kimmel turned down the hosting gig for 2025, citing his busy schedule.
—John Wenzel, Denver Post, 14 Mar. 2026
Steve Maugeri, CBS News, 27 Mar. 2026
That gig looked like a potential sign where Owen might be going after leaving Grey Sloan in the finale but, to Teddy’s relief, Owen turned down the offer (at least for now), leaving us guessing how the two characters would be written off.
—Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 26 Mar. 2026
The Baltimore Ravens, who had entered the challenge and won, turned down Musk’s offer after initial meetings with the company.
—Lora Kolodny, CNBC, 26 Mar. 2026
No one has turned down a request to be interviewed, and many episodes are already completed.
—Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 25 Mar. 2026
Curvelo, 25, turned down the offer twice, in fact.
—Evan Grant, Dallas Morning News, 18 Mar. 2026
Subverting the expectations sown by Harry’s House, his 2022 Grammy winner, the 32-year-old pop idol has turned down his star power to create a more sensory musical experience.
—The Week Us, TheWeek, 18 Mar. 2026
Had they been excluded from the NCAA field, those practices would have been ceremonial in nature because methinks the school would have turned down an invite to the NIT.
—Cedric Golden, Austin American Statesman, 16 Mar. 2026
Kimmel turned down the hosting gig for 2025, citing his busy schedule.
—John Wenzel, Denver Post, 14 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for turned down
Verb
-
In the process, the Bulls refused to shut down players such as center Jalen Smith, who finally was shut down for the season this week after reaggravating a calf injury once again in Wednesday’s game.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Mar. 2026
-
The woman refused any more information and was placed in the women’s ward.—
Kevin Foster,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Democrats are pushing for additional restrictions on Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which Thune and Republicans have rejected so far.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
27 Mar. 2026
-
About 2% of authors were caught, and their papers rejected, Nature reported.—
Tom Chivers,
semafor.com,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
All of the candidates would be newcomers to the board, since incumbents Denise Fears and Blake Roberson declined to run.—
Eleanor Nash,
Kansas City Star,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Uber declined to comment on its latest entry into the autonomous vehicle market.—
Michael Butler,
Miami Herald,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Travis Di Lombardi-Spicer quit his audio producing job on the spot after getting passed up for a raise in January 2025.—
Megan Sauer
Sarah Jackson
Sophie Caldwell,
CNBC,
27 Mar. 2026
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Lee added 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting, but passed up a potential final attempt with the game on the line.—
Edgar Thompson,
The Orlando Sentinel,
23 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Turned down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/turned%20down. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
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