REFUTING Synonyms: 99 Similar and Opposite Words

refuting 1 of 2

adjective

as in disproving

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refuting

2 of 2

verb

present participle of refute

as in denying

to declare not to be true while he was publicly refuting rumors of a merger, behind the scenes the CEO was working to effect that very outcome

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as in discrediting

to prove to be false the victories of African-American athlete Jesse Owens in the 1936 Olympics effectively refuted the racial views of the Nazis

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of refuting

Verb

While refuting any suggestion of police repression, Lecornu condemned violence on the margins of protests, which were mostly peaceful Tuesday, despite the dramatic scenes that dominated coverage. — Joseph Ataman, CNN Money, 7 Oct. 2026 However, in July, Wayne released a message refuting reports of an engagement, referring to a relationship with someone in the past tense, albeit without mentioning them by name. — Preezy Brown, VIBE.com, 29 Sep. 2026 Following the bombshell story, the palace released a rare statement refuting Spencer’s claims. — Staff Author, InStyle, 21 Sep. 2026 Charles’ then-private secretary, Sir Michael Peat, subsequently issued a statement refuting the accusations. — Stylecaster Editors, StyleCaster, 18 Sep. 2026 Brittany Howard, the band’s lead singer and charismatic frontwoman, has spent much of the past decade refuting that notion. — Jonathan Bernstein, Rolling Stone, 29 Aug. 2026 So thankful to Alabama Athletics for refuting it on my behalf. — CBS News, 21 Aug. 2026 Minneapolis’s Walker Art Center and the artist Olalekan Jeyifous are refuting accusations by some museum visitors that his work was made using generative AI, reports MPR News. — Brian Boucher, ARTnews.com, 20 Aug. 2026 Many d This week, the department issued a follow-up statement refuting both of those claims. — Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 15 July 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for refuting

Adjective

Students argue over texts, challenge interpretations, introduce contradictory evidence, and question one another’s reasoning.

— Rabbi Bruce D. Forman, Sun Sentinel, 13 Oct. 2026
Briscoe, for instance, has found that in neural-tube patterning there are two ways of reaching the same place in the landscape — a finding that reconciled previously contradictory observations.

— Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of contradictory

Verb

Attorneys for two of them have gotten back to us, denying the allegations.

— Mahsa Saeidi, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026
But there’s no denying the dynasty-chasing Dodgers are in trouble after the Brewers won games started by Los Angeles’ dynamic duo of Tarik Skubal and Yamamoto.

— Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of denying

Verb

This may involve rejecting a command, removing write access, isolating the AI, transferring control back to the operator or moving equipment into a safe state.

— Gregory Shahnovsky, Forbes.com, 13 Oct. 2026
The sense was that the people who were rejecting the Keynesian model were throwing out the baby with the bathwater.

— Greg Rosalsky, NPR, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of rejecting

Verb

For instance, the measure would prevent courts from overturning approvals of qualifying projects because of CEQA violations.

— Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026
Three previous attempts to evict the 87-year-old were denied by the courts, but in March, the Supreme Court ruled against her, overturning a January 2022 decision in her favor.

— Adam England, PEOPLE, 29 Sep. 2026

Definition of overturning

Verb

His argument would have been laughable, if not for the fact that Black Americans were barred from giving testimony against white people in California’s courts and therefore from contradicting Smith’s account.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2026
Granted, this morning, Mercury in Scorpio will meet with Saturn retrograde in an awkward quincunx, which can be quite the contradicting aspect, as if the two planets in contact didn’t speak the same language.

— Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of contradicting

Verb

Chinese authorities also said no toxic substances were found in its products, disproving social-media claims that previously hurt sales.

— Alexa LoMonaco,Kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 15 Oct. 2026
Less than a month after astonishing the world with its solution to the long-standing Navier-Stokes problem, OpenAI has released 722 maths papers, proving or disproving problems across numerous fields from algebraic geometry to number theory.

— Will Barker, TheWeek, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of disproving

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“Refuting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/refuting. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of refuting

adjective

verb

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