nullify
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to render or declare legally void or inoperative.
to nullify a contract.
- Synonyms:
- cancel, void, annul, invalidate
-
to deprive (something) of value or effectiveness; make futile or of no consequence.
- Synonyms:
- cancel, void, annul, invalidate
verb
-
to render legally void or of no effect
-
to render ineffective or useless; cancel out
Other Word Forms
- nullification noun
- nullifier noun
- renullify verb (used with object)
- unnullified adjective
Etymology
Origin of nullify
First recorded in 1585–95, nullify is from the Late Latin word nūllificāre to despise. See nulli-, -fy
Explanation
To nullify something means to make it invalid or ineffective. A peace treaty is an attempt to nullify aggression and division within a region. If you take a null, or a zero, and make it into an action you can take, and you’ve got nullify — the act of making something void or zero-like. If you have an argument with your friend, it might nullify the fun you had together that day. This word is particularly used in legal language — a divorce nullifies a marriage — or in business disputes where you are trying to nullify someone else’s actions or plans.
Vocabulary lists containing nullify
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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.
The goal of the bill is not to nullify Newsom’s order, Toppin said.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 22, 2026
They intend to bleed, to delay, to nullify by exhaustion what they can’t defeat by argument.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 11, 2026
It was a tactical lesson from Robinson who masterminded the perfect game plan to nullify his old club.
From BBC • Dec. 14, 2025
Now, Greenpeace is trying to get a Dutch court to nullify the jury award, which the trial judge reduced to $345 million in October.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 5, 2025
Failure to abide by this one rule would nullify his victory; and Eurydice would be lost forever.
From "We Are the Ants" by Shaun David Hutchinson
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.
