repudiate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to reject as having no authority or binding force.
to repudiate a claim.
- Antonyms:
- accept
-
to cast off or disown.
to repudiate a son.
-
to reject with disapproval or condemnation.
to repudiate a new doctrine.
- Synonyms:
- disapprove, condemn, disown, renounce
- Antonyms:
- approve
-
to reject with denial.
to repudiate a charge as untrue.
-
to refuse to acknowledge and pay (a debt), as a state, municipality, etc.
verb
-
to reject the authority or validity of; refuse to accept or ratify
Congress repudiated the treaty that the President had negotiated
-
to refuse to acknowledge or pay (a debt)
-
to cast off or disown (a son, lover, etc)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
repudiationnoun
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repudiatornoun
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nonrepudiableadjective
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nonrepudiativeadjective
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repudiableadjective
-
repudiativeadjective
-
unrepudiableadjective
-
unrepudiatedadjective
-
unrepudiativeadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
repudiatesimple
-
repudiatessimple
-
have repudiatedperfect
-
has repudiatedperfect
-
are repudiatingprogressive
-
am repudiatingprogressive
-
is repudiatingprogressive
-
have been repudiatingperfect progressive
-
has been repudiatingperfect progressive
Past
-
repudiatedsimple
-
had repudiatedperfect
-
was repudiatingprogressive
-
were repudiatingprogressive
-
had been repudiatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of repudiate
First recorded in 1535–45; from Latin repudiātus (past participle of repudiāre “to reject, refuse”), equivalent to repudi(um) “a casting off, divorce” ( re- + pud(ere) “to make ashamed, feel shame” + -ium noun suffix ) + -ātus past participle sufffix; see re-, pudendum, -ium, -ate 1
Explanation
To repudiate something is to reject it, or to refuse to accept or support it. If you grow up religious, but repudiate all organized religion as an adult, you might start spending holidays at the movies, or just going to work. This verb usually refers to rejecting something that has authority, such as a legal contract, doctrine, or claim. In connection with debts or other obligations, repudiate is used in the specialized sense "to refuse to recognize or pay." If referring to a child or a romantic parner, repudiate is used in the sense "to disown, cast off." This verb is derived from Latin repudiare, "to put away, divorce."
Vocabulary lists containing repudiate
"Letter from Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King, Jr. (1963)
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Grade 10, List 1
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1984
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This signal turns to static if defendants are allowed to repudiate allegations to which they just agreed “without admitting or denying” these very same allegations.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 17, 2026
He didn’t repudiate his warnings when they failed to pan out, yet didn’t lose his popularity or prestige.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 17, 2026
In response, Allister said: "If Claire is trying to pretend that I am insincere in my condemnation of violence then I utterly repudiate and indeed resent that comment."
From BBC • Jun. 10, 2025
“Happy Days,” in a way, was the ’70s using the ’50s to repudiate the ’60s, or at least the divisive aftermath of them that fueled the one-liners in Archie Bunker’s living room.
From New York Times • Jan. 15, 2024
To him, Harrison represented the old Chicago of filth, smoke, and vice, everything the fair was designed to repudiate.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
