rebut
Americanverb (used with object)
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rebuts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
rebutted,
past participle, past
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rebutting
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
rebuts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
rebutted,
past participle, past
-
rebutting
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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rebutsimple
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rebutssimple
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have rebuttedperfect
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has rebuttedperfect
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am rebuttingprogressive
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are rebuttingprogressive
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is rebuttingprogressive
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have been rebuttingperfect progressive
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has been rebuttingperfect progressive
Past
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rebuttedsimple
-
had rebuttedperfect
-
was rebuttingprogressive
-
were rebuttingprogressive
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had been rebuttingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of rebut
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English reb(o)uten, from Old French rebouter, equivalent to re- re- + bouter butt 3
Explanation
To rebut is to argue against something. If your parents say you're too young and irresponsible to drive, you can rebut their claim by ticking off examples of your responsibility. When you argue against something, you rebut that position or argument. Your school's principal might rebut your teacher's argument that the class is overcrowded by pointing out that there could legally be five more kids in the class. The teacher could rebut the principal's rebuttal by observing that there aren't enough books or seats for the kids in the classroom now. Rebut comes from an old French word rebuter, meaning "to thrust back."
Vocabulary lists containing rebut
Fahrenheit 451
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Expository Writing, List 2
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Just Mercy
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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:
Owens’ arguments are often nonsensical, but because she commands an audience of more than 6 million YouTube subscribers, they have enough power to force the rest of the commentary class to rebut them.
From Slate ● Jul. 21, 2026
"We view it both important and with precedent to rebut an incorrect scientific claim made in the DOE report," said Prof Santer, of UEA's Climatic Research Unit.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 2, 2026
Writing for the majority, Roberts said that Cook deserved a chance to challenge her removal and rebut Trump's accusations, which would have to be further substantiated.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
And he makes a claim for the relevance of his project: “These poems rebut the parochialism and tribalism that dog our present, even as they appeal to universal experiences and values.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 19, 2025
Well informed and a very skilled debater, Beck made hash out of my fumbling avowal, and I lacked the wherewithal to rebut him.
From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer
That rebuts Mr. Trump’s claim after Mr. Maduro’s capture six weeks ago that Ms. Machado lacks support in the country.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 13, 2026
But when Shannon’s fossil-fuel tycoon rebuts that the rest of humanity drove cars, too, well, he’s got a point.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 6, 2024
Evidence of enjoyment of life directly rebuts the central proposition of the oppressor – namely, that the oppressed is inferior.
From Salon ● Aug. 10, 2024
Monday's court filing from the city of Baltimore rebuts that number as "substantially less than the amount that will be claimed for losses and damages arising out of the Dali's allision with the Key Bridge".
From BBC ● Apr. 23, 2024
“Good. Being a little bit thirsty will remind us why we need to ration,” he rebuts, his anger beginning to fill to the brim.
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
Hussain tried to rekindle the relationship but the woman rebutted his attempts on numerous occasions.
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026
Mr. Modi also rebutted on X.com a CNBC-TV18 report that said the government was considering taxing foreign travel, a policy that could have accelerated investor flight from India.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 3, 2026
Lawyers for Haitian and Syrian TPS holders rebutted, however, that federal courts have the power to review the determination process.
From Salon ● Apr. 30, 2026
Greenland, backed by Copenhagen, rebutted that it was not for sale and would decide its own future.
From Barron's ● Dec. 22, 2025
Requests from PIH staff to be paid for working extra hours “because other institutions did it” were rebutted by Farmer.
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
He said social media platforms bore responsibility for not rebutting in time the content that encouraged last week's rush, warning it was "very likely" a similar event would happen "in any part of the world".
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
After this, Cembalest turned his attention to rebutting a widely believed yet, according to him, incorrect idea pertaining to how the spike in energy prices caused by the war might redound on the U.S. economy.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 6, 2026
Daniela delivered a long response, rebutting him point by point.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 28, 2026
Cid's lawyer spoke at the session on Tuesday and stressed that his client had not been coerced into striking the plea deal, thereby rebutting accusations that his testimony had been extracted under pressure.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2025
I had been listening and silently rebutting each sentence with my eyes closed; then there was a hush, which in an audience warns that something unplanned is happening.
From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou
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.
