denier

¹ American  

[dih-nahy-er] / dɪˈnaɪ ər /

noun

1. a person who denies.

2. a person who refuses to accept the existence, truth, or validity of something despite evidence or general support for it: It makes no sense for an environmental watchdog agency to hire a denier of climate change.

   The writer is a Holocaust denier.

   It makes no sense for an environmental watchdog agency to hire a denier of climate change.

   Election deniers continue to question the integrity of the ballot counts.

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denier ² American  

[duh-neer, den-yer, duh-nyey] / dəˈnɪər, ˈdɛn yər, dəˈnyeɪ /

noun

1. a unit of weight indicating the fineness of fiber filaments and yarns, both silk and synthetic, and equal to a yarn weighing one gram per each 9,000 meters: used especially in indicating the fineness of women's hosiery.

2. any of various coins issued in French-speaking regions, especially a coin of France, originally of silver but later of copper, introduced in the 8th century and continued until 1794.

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denier ¹ British  

noun

1. a unit of weight used to measure the fineness of silk and man-made fibres, esp when woven into women's tights, etc. It is equal to 1 gram per 9000 metres

2. any of several former European coins of various denominations

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denier ² British  

/ dɪˈnaɪə /

noun

1. a person who denies

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Usage

The words denier and denialism are used to describe people and positions that are opposed to the validity or veracity of an explanation or narrative put forth by an authority or expert. The words are commonly used in fixed compounds that truncate the name of the official account being called into question. Thus, a denier of climate change is often called a climate denier, and a movement that refuses to accept the integrity or official results of an election is referred to as election denialism. These expressions become fixed in their shortened form, and are often then associated with a specific counternarrative, rather than broadly applying to any and all denial associated with the modifying word (e.g., climate, election, evolution, genocide).

Etymology

Origin of denier¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; deny + -er ¹ ( def. )

Origin of denier²

1375–1425; late Middle English < Old French < Latin dēnārius denarius

Example Sentences

Villanueva also claimed that Hunstman was a Holocaust denier without providing any evidence to support that claim, which Hunstman denied.

From Los Angeles Times • May 15, 2025

A heckler accused Mr Galloway of being a climate change denier, while a rival candidate threw orange confetti in his direction.

From BBC • Feb. 29, 2024

I realised I was no longer a climate denier.

From BBC • Nov. 23, 2023

Lipstadt, a historian, successfully defeated a libel case brought by British author David Irving after she labeled him a Holocaust denier.

From Reuters • Oct. 12, 2023

Mail, māl, n. an old French coin—half a denier: rent.—n.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 2 of 4: E-M) by Various