Refuse
Refuse verb - To show unwillingness to accept, do, engage in, or agree to.
Usage example: she refused the award, citing the hard work of others who deserved the recognition more than she did
Refute and refuse are semantically related in reject topic. In some cases you can use "Refute" instead a verb "Refuse", when it comes to topics like deny.
Mutual synonyms
Common collocations
| people | refuse people | refute people |
| kind | refuse kind | refute kind |
| idea | refuse idea | refute idea |
| suggestion | refuse suggestion | refute suggestion |
Cite this Source
Refute and Refuse. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/refuse/refute
Refuse & Refute. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/refuse/refute>.
Refute or Refuse. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/refuse/refute.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "refuse" and "refute" have occurred on timeline