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impugn

[ im-pyoon ]
/ ɪmˈpyun /
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See synonyms for: impugn / impugned / impugnable / impugnment on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object)
to challenge as false (another's statements, motives, etc.); cast doubt upon.
Archaic. to assail (a person) by words or arguments; vilify.
Obsolete. to attack (a person) physically.
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Origin of impugn

1325–75; Middle English impugnen<Middle French impugner<Latin impugnāre to attack, equivalent to im-im-1 + pugnāre to fight, derivative of pugnus fist; see pugnacious

OTHER WORDS FROM impugn

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH impugn

impugn , impute
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

Words related to impugn

assail, contravene, tar, attack, blast, break, contradict, cross, deny, dispute, gainsay, knock, negate, negative, oppose, question, resist, slam, smear, traduce

How to use impugn in a sentence

  • The only impugnable matter in the deed lies, as has been said, in the number of cardinals so created at a batch.

    The Life of Cesare Borgia|Raphael Sabatini

British Dictionary definitions for impugn

impugn
/ (ɪmˈpjuːn) /
verb
(tr) to challenge or attack as false; assail; criticize

Derived forms of impugn

impugnable, adjectiveimpugnation (ˌɪmpʌɡˈneɪʃən) or impugnment, nounimpugner, noun

Word Origin for impugn

C14: from Old French impugner, from Latin impugnāre to fight against, attack, from im- + pugnāre to fight
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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