discountenance
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to disconcert, embarrass, or abash.
With his composure, he survived every attempt to discountenance him.
-
to show disapproval of.
The teachers discountenanced smoking by the students.
noun
verb
-
to make ashamed or confused
-
to disapprove of
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of discountenance
First recorded in 1570–80; dis- 1 + countenance
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.
See Examples For:
But when Hamilton pleaded a second time, Reverend Moore agreed, provided that if he lived, Hamilton would “employ all your influence in society to discountenance this barbarous custom.”
From New York Times ● Mar. 5, 2016
They did not, as was generally reported, decide to discountenance Loucheur's efforts at an agreement with Britain.
From Time Magazine Archive
Dr. Fairfax skilled to discountenance indignities, replied: "I am standing here on my two feet—and here I stay!"
From Time Magazine Archive
American principles of fair play discountenance attempts to condemn a person by compelling him to disclose his own transgressions.
From Time Magazine Archive
The term antinomian has since been applied to all doctrines and practices which seem to contemn or discountenance strict moral obligations.
From The New Gresham Encyclopedia. Vol. 1 Part 2 Amiel to Atrauli by Various
When deprived of the regular Democratic nomination, he had firmly discountenanced a "McKee Anyway" movement.
From Time Magazine Archive
The Committee concludes that, in nearly all instances, weapons discountenanced by international law were first employed by the Allies and then adopted in "rightful reprisal" by The Central Powers.
From Time Magazine Archive
The Board through its business conduct committee, has always discountenanced bear raids and manipulations of prices, and it again instructs that commit tee to take particularly vigorous measures to prevent such activities.
From Time Magazine Archive
Most charitable view of the matter is that Mr. Curtis, having discovered how his name was being used, discountenanced his henchmen.
From Time Magazine Archive
So much is it out of the popular drift that while a state was voting over-whelmingly for constitutional prohibition the measure was discountenanced by both of its senators.
From Revisiting the Earth by James Langdon Hill
Several bond houses wrote back, politely but firmly discountenancing the notion of preferring stocks to bonds as investments.
From Time Magazine Archive
To Gabon's 6,000 Frenchmen that meant only one thing: the U.S. had been behind the abortive coup in hopes of discountenancing le grand Charles.
From Time Magazine Archive
She was discountenancing this remedy, or any remedy, as needless, in an unconvincingly weak voice.
From When Ghost Meets Ghost by William Frend De Morgan
I must beg, therefore, that, if the rumor be true, you use all practicable means, even to the use of your parental authority, in discountenancing and forbidding such intimacy.
From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 16, No. 98, December, 1865 by Various
This practice has of late years much diminished; owing, in a great measure, to the increased good feeling of naval officers, as also to the Admiralty discountenancing such strong measures, unless in most urgent cases.
From Narratives of Shipwrecks of the Royal Navy; between 1793 and 1849 by William O. S. Gilly
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.
