dislike
Americanverb (used with object)
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dislikes,
present (3rd person singular)
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disliked,
past participle, past
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disliking
present participle
noun
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dislikes
plural
verb
noun
Synonym Usage
Dislike, disgust, distaste, repugnance imply antipathy toward something. Dislike is a general word, sometimes connoting an inherent or permanent feeling of antipathy for something: to have a dislike for crowds. Disgust connotes a feeling of loathing for what is offensive to the feelings and sensibilities: He felt disgust at seeing such ostentation. Distaste implies a more or less settled dislike: to have distaste for spicy foods, for hard work. Repugnance is a strong feeling of aversion for, and antagonism toward, something: to feel repugnance for (or toward ) low criminals.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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predislikenoun
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self-dislikenoun
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dislikableadjective
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dislikeableadjective
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self-dislikedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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dislikesimple
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dislikessimple
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have dislikedperfect
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has dislikedperfect
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am dislikingprogressive
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are dislikingprogressive
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is dislikingprogressive
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have been dislikingperfect progressive
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has been dislikingperfect progressive
Past
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dislikedsimple
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had dislikedperfect
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was dislikingprogressive
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were dislikingprogressive
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had been dislikingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of dislike
Explanation
Put simply, to dislike can be used as a transitive verb that means to "not like." Maybe you dislike spinach. But it can also be a noun, as in "You seem to have developed quite a dislike for spinach." English being a language of trial-and-error, the word dislike came about in the mid-16th Century, as modern English was still in its infancy. At that time, some words were tried and discarded, to be replaced with others that stuck. That was the case with dislike, which developed after the word "mislike" was dropped as the opposite of "like." Speaking of prefixes, don't confuse the word dislike with "unlike," which means that something is different from something else.
Vocabulary lists containing dislike
Power Prefix: dis-
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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.
See Examples For:
To point out its flaws will not persuade a single viewer to like it less, only to dislike the critic more.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
When it came to film however, "I don't dislike it at all," he added.
From Barron's ● Sep. 4, 2026
And because markets dislike uncertainty more than bad news, investors start pricing in the risk of further unexpected rule changes from the government.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 4, 2026
His folk-singer brother first awakened his interest in politics while being "asked to leave" grammar school for "messing about" deepened his dislike of authority.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
Now they were stuck in her head, like a catchy tune from a nautically themed operetta that one cannot help singing in the shower, despite having a strong dislike for the show itself.
From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood
"The challenge goes way beyond just putting AI into a robot," said Lian Jye Su from technology research group Omdia, who dislikes the term "physical AI" for downplaying the complexity of the hardware solutions needed.
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
Maybe he just really dislikes the entire program and wasn’t targeting Haitians in particular.
From Slate ● Jun. 25, 2026
But the machinery he dislikes was built in 1999, when the Fed first began signaling a hike before it moved because it didn’t want to catch markets off guard.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026
For someone now praised for her lyrics, Reble insists she dislikes writing.
From BBC ● May 15, 2026
Once that message is well and truly ingrained in you, it feels like vainglory to imagine one’s own likes and dislikes could matter to other people.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
A disliked corner of the stock market really isn’t as bad as it seems, according to StoneX.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026
The 30-year-old told AFP in Venice she disliked fame and celebrity, but Gyllenhaal tipped her for even greater success.
From Barron's ● Sep. 12, 2026
"This is intimidating, even for a seasoned professional. I ultimately got the job, but even though I won I disliked the process," says Alcruz.
From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026
Many of the offers centered on capitalizing on their family names and pigeonholing them into commercial pop or hip-hop, which they tried and ultimately disliked.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
Gretchen was, in her way, a very real way, bringing me into a conversation; she knew many things I liked, and now she was showing me some of the things she liked and disliked.
From This Side of Wild by Gary Paulsen
She was vague about her reasons for disliking Epstein.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 31, 2025
Some readers confessed to never having seen the film whose soundtrack they love; others even reported disliking it.
From New York Times ● May 26, 2024
He told the court he had "political views" about Mr Trump's time in office, liking some of his policies and disliking others.
From BBC ● Apr. 19, 2024
“It’s not a matter of liking or disliking dogs,” she said.
From Seattle Times ● May 15, 2023
"I have a lot of reasons for disliking Alaska, OK?"
From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer
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.
