Deter and Encourage

Deter

Deter verb - To steer (a person) from an activity or course of action.
Usage example: we tried to deter him from his crazy scheme, but to no avail

Encourage is an antonym for deter in check topic.

Encourage

Encourage verb - To try to persuade (someone) through earnest appeals to follow a course of action.
Usage example: the pastor continues to encourage the couple to work out their problems in hopes of saving their marriage

Deter is an antonym for encourage in topics: urge, help, stimulate spiritually.

Nearby Words: encouragement, encouraging

Common collocations

loyalty deter loyalty encourage loyalty
people deter people encourage people
someone deter someone encourage someone
anyone deter anyone encourage anyone
Other words: opponent, player, behavior, friends, players, fans, students, contestants, girls.
Cite this Source
Encourage and Deter. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/deter/encourage
Deter & Encourage. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/deter/encourage>.
Encourage or Deter. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/deter/encourage.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "deter" and "encourage" have occurred on timeline