English Meaning & Definitions
The act or an instance of declining or refusing to accept, grant, or do something.
- “His flat refusal to cooperate with the investigation surprised the detectives.”
- “The company issued a formal refusal of the union's demands.”
English Synonyms & Near Equivalents
English Antonyms & Opposites
Comprehensive Thesaurus Breakdown
Compare formal, informal, literary synonyms and register nuances for “refusal”.
Derived from the Middle English 'refusen', which comes from the Old French 'refuser'. This is likely rooted in the Vulgar Latin 'refusare', a frequentative form of 'refundere' (to pour back, give back), suggesting the act of returning or rejecting an offer.
Think of 're-fuse': If you refuse to join a circuit, you are a 're-fuse' (a broken fuse that stops the flow).
Frequently Asked Questions About “refusal”
1. What is the meaning of “refusal” in English?
In English, refusal (noun) is defined as: “The act or an instance of declining or refusing to accept, grant, or do something.”.
2. How do you use “refusal” in a sentence?
“His flat refusal to cooperate with the investigation surprised the detectives.”
3. What are English synonyms of “refusal”?
4. What is the etymology and word origin of “refusal”?
Derived from the Middle English 'refusen', which comes from the Old French 'refuser'. This is likely rooted in the Vulgar Latin 'refusare', a frequentative form of 'refundere' (to pour back, give back), suggesting the act of returning or rejecting an offer.
🇬🇧More English Words to English
View all English words →A measurement of time indicating an instantaneous occurrence or a state where no time has elapsed.
The base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), equal to the duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium-133 atom.
A specific duration of time equal to one hour and forty-six minutes and twelve seconds.
The cardinal number equal to one thousand million (1,000,000,000), expressed in scientific notation as 10^9.