repudiate

verb

re·​pu·​di·​ate ri-ˈpyü-dē-ˌāt 

repudiated; repudiating

transitive verb

1

a

: to refuse to accept

especially : to reject as unauthorized or as having no binding force

repudiate a contract

repudiate a will

b

: to reject as untrue or unjust

repudiate a charge

2

: to refuse to acknowledge or pay

repudiate a debt

3

: to refuse to have anything to do with : disown

repudiate a cause

… unless they repudiated the failed policies of the past and took decisive action, the party might fracture or lose its hold on the electorate.

—Walter A. McDougall

4

dated : to divorce or separate formally from (a woman to whom one is betrothed or married)

"The incident was witnessed by … the Marquess Zanipolo, who, in consequence, has already repudiated his unhappy bride."

—Edith Wharton

repudiator

ri-ˈpyü-dē-ˌā-tər 

noun

Did you know?

In Latin, the noun repudium refers to the rejection of a spouse or prospective spouse, and the related verb repudiare means "to divorce" or "to reject." In the 16th century, English speakers borrowed repudiare to create the English verb repudiate, which they used as a synonym of divorce when in reference to a wife and as a synonym of disown when in reference to a member of one's family. They also used the word more generally in the sense of "to reject or cast off." By the 18th century repudiate had also come to be used for the rejection of things that one does not accept as true or just, ranging from opinions and accusations to contracts and debts.

Synonyms

• contradict
• deny
• disaffirm
• disallow
• disavow
• disclaim
• disconfirm
• disown
• gainsay
• negate
• negative
• refute
• reject

Choose the Right Synonym for repudiate

decline, refuse, reject, repudiate, spurn mean to turn away by not accepting, receiving, or considering.

decline often implies courteous refusal especially of offers or invitations.

declined his party's nomination

refuse suggests more positiveness or ungraciousness and often implies the denial of something asked for.

refused to lend them the money

reject implies a peremptory refusal by sending away or discarding.

rejected the manuscript as unpublishable

repudiate implies a casting off or disowning as untrue, unauthorized, or unworthy of acceptance.

teenagers who repudiate the values of their parents

spurn stresses contempt or disdain in rejection or repudiation.

spurned his overtures of friendship

Examples of repudiate in a Sentence

During the Algerian war of independence, the United States had also repudiated France's claimed right to attack a town in neighboring Tunisia that succored Algerian guerrillas … —Christopher Hitchens, Harper's, February 2001

When witnessing abuse, boys will identify with the seemingly powerful father who appears to be a "winner" and will repudiate the mother, who seems to be the "loser." —Constance Adler, Shape, September 1993

While a wife could divorce her husband only for good reason … a husband could repudiate his wife without giving any reason … —Albert Hourani, A History of the Arab Peoples, 1991

Voters in Myanmar … appeared today to have sharply repudiated their military rulers and to have given a landslide victory to the main opposition party … —Steven Erlanger, New York Times, 29 May 1990

Photographs, the most ubiquitous emblem of mass culture, found an obvious place in Pop Art, and were embraced by those intent on repudiating the preciosity of action painting. —Naomi Rosenblum, A World History of Photography, 1989

Three weeks after the agreement was made and before any specifications were submitted, the buyer repudiated the agreement. —John D. Calamari and Joseph M. Perillo, The Law of Contracts, 1987

a generation that has repudiated the values of the past

He has publicly repudiated the government's policies.

He published an article that repudiates the study's claims.

She says she has evidence which repudiates the allegations.

Recent Examples on the Web

By the time Barack Obama won the White House in 2008, there was momentum not only to repudiate the use of torture by U.S. intelligence agencies, but also to embrace new methods that were deemed more ethical and reliable. —Anita Chabria, Los Angeles Times, 23 Dec. 2024

Bell, a former federal prosecutor who President Donald Trump nominated to the bench in 2018, repudiated those criticisms in his order. —Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 22 Dec. 2024

This level of antipathy toward American progressives is not uncommon among Chinese liberals, who, since 2016, have flocked toward Trump, in part to repudiate a Democratic Party whose emphasis on political correctness—real or imagined—reminds them of China’s past disasters in socialist governance. —Chang Che, The New Yorker, 21 Dec. 2024

The Saudis invited Syria to repudiate Iran and rejoin the Arab bloc. —Melik Kaylan, Forbes, 10 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Latin repudiatus, past participle of repudiare, from repudium rejection of a prospective spouse, divorce, probably from re- + pudēre to shame

First Known Use

1545, in the meaning defined at sense 4

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Kids Definition

repudiate

verb

re·​pu·​di·​ate ri-ˈpyüd-ē-ˌāt 

repudiated; repudiating

1

: to refuse to have anything to do with

2

: to refuse to accept or pay

repudiate a debt

repudiation

-ˌpyüd-ē-ˈā-shən

noun

repudiator

-ˈpyüd-ē-ˌāt-ər 

noun

Legal Definition

repudiate

transitive verb

re·​pu·​di·​ate ri-ˈpyü-dē-ˌāt 

repudiated; repudiating

: to disavow or reject an obligation (as a debt) or duty (as performance under a contract)

specifically : to indicate an inability or unwillingness to perform as promised under (a contract)

repudiator

-ˌā-tər 

noun