spurn
Americanverb (used with object)
-
spurns,
present (3rd person singular)
-
spurned,
past participle, past
-
spurning
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
spurns,
present (3rd person singular)
-
spurned,
past participle, past
-
spurning
present participle
noun
-
disdainful rejection.
-
contemptuous treatment.
- Synonyms:
- contumely
-
a kick.
verb
-
to reject (a person or thing) with contempt
-
archaic to kick (at)
noun
-
an instance of spurning
-
archaic a kick or thrust
Synonym Usage
See refuse 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
spurnsimple
-
spurnssimple
-
have spurnedperfect
-
has spurnedperfect
-
am spurningprogressive
-
are spurningprogressive
-
is spurningprogressive
-
have been spurningperfect progressive
-
has been spurningperfect progressive
Past
-
spurnedsimple
-
had spurnedperfect
-
was spurningprogressive
-
were spurningprogressive
-
had been spurningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of spurn
First recorded in 1250–1300; (verb) Middle English spurnen, Old English spurnan; cognate with Old Saxon, Old High German spurnan, Old Norse sporna “to kick”; akin to Latin spernere “to put away”; (noun) Middle English: “a kick, contemptuous stroke,” derivative of the verb
Explanation
If you reject your mother's offer to buy you a pair of lederhosen with a snort and eye roll, you are spurning her generosity. To spurn means to reject with disdain. Originally, to spurn was to kick away. Though it's not used in that context so often anymore, being spurned still feels like a kick in the gut. You can reject someone kindly, or let them down easily, but you can't spurn someone with anything but malice.
Vocabulary lists containing spurn
Dissed List: Breakup Words for Valentine's Day
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Grade 11, List 4
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"Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death" by Patrick Henry (1775)
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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:
More Americans were expected to spurn pricier steaks and burgers in favor of cheaper chicken.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
Heteropessimism exists alongside heterosexuality not because being straight is terrible or embarrassing or out of fashion, but because it is, first and foremost, an institution — one that in many places remains dangerous to spurn.
From Salon ● Jun. 3, 2026
Neither country - nor the rest of Asean - could afford to spurn Trump's request for this ceremony.
From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2025
Florida State: You’ll find the Seminoles closer to the top here than in other post-spring forecasts, largely because of our faith in coach Mike Norvell to turn the playoff spurn into seasonlong emotional propulsion.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 3, 2024
I hoped that some bright kid at Ohio State University who really wanted to be an oceanographer would read my book, spurn the offer from Goldman Sachs, and set out to sea.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
The story of the first Carthaginian queen, Dido, was co-opted by the Roman poet Virgil, whose hero, Aeneas, spurns her.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 11, 2026
Chiedozie Ogbene spurns a great chance to give the Irish an early lead - he's fed down the left and sprints into the box before smashing into the side netting.
From BBC ● Mar. 22, 2024
In the ancient Greek tale of Narcissus, a young hunter, admired for his unmatched beauty, spurns many who love and pursue him.
From Scientific American ● Aug. 16, 2023
It’s tricky dealing with Rodgers, who sometimes spurns accountability by expressing frustration over the mistakes of inexperienced players.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 15, 2023
The theatre itself is every thing that could be desired by any gentleman of advanced principles, who spurns propriety, and inclines himself toward oranges.
From Harper's New Monthly Magazine, Vol. 3, No. 15, August, 1851 by Various
The announcement comes after North Korea has repeatedly spurned South Korean President Lee Jae Myung's dovish overtures, labelling Seoul its "most hostile" enemy and declaring itself an "irreversible" nuclear state.
From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026
His sister spurned his attempts to reconcile, he says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 23, 2026
Despite no organized opposition, a flurry of cities, as well as the editorial board of the Los Angeles Daily News, have loudly spurned the idea, arguing it will make the region even less affordable.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2026
January arrival Tomas Cvancara spurned multiple chances after Yang Hyun-jun's opener and Dundee took advantage as Simon Murray equalised with a second-half penalty.
From BBC ● Apr. 5, 2026
“The next day the young gentleman admitted the truth to the constable. He had made the whole story up because I had spurned his romantic advances.”
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
It entered talks with Sweden’s Saab to acquire surveillance aircraft to help detect and deter threats in the Arctic, spurning U.S. suppliers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
The Rams grew nervy, spurning chances to build their lead.
From Barron's ● Jan. 11, 2026
After spurning BHP’s advances last year, Anglo American announced a proposed merger with Canada’s Teck Resources in September that would value the pro forma entity at around $60 billion using today’s share prices.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 24, 2025
And there was a touch of Nunez about Ekitike spurning a header inside the six-yard box less than a minute into the second half, and another chance he blazed over from 12 yards.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2025
He wanted to help Reyna, but since his own strategy was to deal with his problems alone, spurning anyone who tried to get close, he couldn’t exactly criticize Reyna for doing the same thing.
From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan
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.
