refuse
1 of 3verb
re·fuse ri-ˈfyüz 
refused; refusing
transitive verb
1
: to express oneself as unwilling to accept
refuse a gift
refuse a promotion
2
a
: to show or express unwillingness to do or comply with
refused to answer the question
b
: to not allow someone to have or do (something) : deny
they were refused admittance to the game
3
obsolete : give up, renounce
deny thy father and refuse thy name
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare4
of a horse : to decline to jump or leap over
intransitive verb
: to withhold acceptance, compliance, or permission
refuser noun
refuse
2 of 3noun
ref·use ˈre-ˌfyüs
-ˌfyüz
1
: the worthless or useless part of something : leavings
2
: trash, garbage
refuse
3 of 3adjective
ref·use ˈre-ˌfyüs
-ˌfyüz
: thrown aside or left as worthless
Synonyms
Verb
- decline
- deny
- disallow
- disapprove
- negative
- nix
- reject
- reprobate
- withhold
Noun
- chaff
- deadwood
- debris
- dreck
- drek
- dross
- dust
- effluvium
- effluvia
- garbage
- junk
- litter
- offal
- offscouring
- raffle
- riffraff
- rubbish
- scrap
- spilth
- trash
- truck
- waste
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Verb When they offered me the money, I couldn't refuse. They asked her to help but she refused. Noun refuse had littered the playground until our volunteer group cleaned it up
Recent Examples on the Web David G. Savage, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2022 The individual inside the room continued to refuse to leave, according to Weathers, amid negotiation attempts that lasted several hours. The Courier-Journal, 9 Sep. 2022 For a physician to leave a patient in distress in the operating room unattended, or to refuse to return, is considered a profound breach of duty. BostonGlobe.com, 7 Sep. 2022 As Andrew Tobias writes, DeWine would be the second straight incumbent governor to refuse to debate. Andrew J. Tobias, cleveland, 2 Sep. 2022 Yet Freud continued to refuse his colleagues’ entreaties to leave. Rachel Newcomb, Washington Post, 2 Sep. 2022 To refuse the wishes of someone who had conferred an unquantifiable recognition on us, through the status of his own legitimacy, tore me apart. Jann S. Wenner, Rolling Stone, 2 Sep. 2022 The vote marked the first by the Board of State Canvassers in a statewide election since the 2020 presidential contest saw allies of former President Donald Trump urge Republican members to refuse to certify the election. Clara Hendrickson, Detroit Free Press, 19 Aug. 2022 My dad was once again in no position to refuse a trip to the hospital, so my mom took him there. Josh Gondelman, New York Times, 14 Aug. 2022 Susan Orlean, The New Yorker, 12 July 2022 The refuse fee would increase by $0.50, for a new rate of $9.25 per residential unit per month. Elena Ferrarin, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2022 Grievances ranged from deer and mice invasions to supply chain issues for extra refuse carts to American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to a local Airbnb that has been no vacation for neighbors. Thomas Jewell, cleveland, 2 Aug. 2022 The winner of the Democratic primary is expected to face Republican Mike Paine, a longtime refuse hauler whose family’s name is emblazoned on garbage and recycling cans all across town. Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 23 May 2022 The contract with Republic Services includes weekly refuse, recycling and yard waste (from April to mid-November) pickups, as well as monthly bulk collections. John Benson, cleveland, 13 June 2022 The Aurora City Council is set to vote on an extension of its waste collection contract with Groot Industries Inc. for refuse, recyclables and yard waste. Steve Lord, chicagotribune.com, 8 Dec. 2021 Police who had conducted an eight-hour search of medical refuse at Republic Waste transfer station on Howard Avenue in Roxbury followed up with another search of the site based on the pathologist’s comments. Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 23 June 2022 This is seventeen and one half pounds per year of ‘hard stuff,’ mingled with sand, stems, impure molasses, olive oil, chips and concentrated dirt and refuse of all kinds. Mark Fischetti, Scientific American, 21 Sep. 2021 See More
Verb
The Supreme Court issued an order by Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Friday that allows Yeshiva University in New York to refuse to recognize an LGBTQ club for students. David G. Savage, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2022 The individual inside the room continued to refuse to leave, according to Weathers, amid negotiation attempts that lasted several hours. The Courier-Journal, 9 Sep. 2022 For a physician to leave a patient in distress in the operating room unattended, or to refuse to return, is considered a profound breach of duty. BostonGlobe.com, 7 Sep. 2022 As Andrew Tobias writes, DeWine would be the second straight incumbent governor to refuse to debate. Andrew J. Tobias, cleveland, 2 Sep. 2022 Yet Freud continued to refuse his colleagues’ entreaties to leave. Rachel Newcomb, Washington Post, 2 Sep. 2022 To refuse the wishes of someone who had conferred an unquantifiable recognition on us, through the status of his own legitimacy, tore me apart. Jann S. Wenner, Rolling Stone, 2 Sep. 2022 The vote marked the first by the Board of State Canvassers in a statewide election since the 2020 presidential contest saw allies of former President Donald Trump urge Republican members to refuse to certify the election. Clara Hendrickson, Detroit Free Press, 19 Aug. 2022 My dad was once again in no position to refuse a trip to the hospital, so my mom took him there. Josh Gondelman, New York Times, 14 Aug. 2022 Noun
Greig hadn’t exactly set out to run a hospice for the wretched refuse of the canine universe. Susan Orlean, The New Yorker, 12 July 2022 The refuse fee would increase by $0.50, for a new rate of $9.25 per residential unit per month. Elena Ferrarin, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2022 Grievances ranged from deer and mice invasions to supply chain issues for extra refuse carts to American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to a local Airbnb that has been no vacation for neighbors. Thomas Jewell, cleveland, 2 Aug. 2022 The winner of the Democratic primary is expected to face Republican Mike Paine, a longtime refuse hauler whose family’s name is emblazoned on garbage and recycling cans all across town. Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 23 May 2022 The contract with Republic Services includes weekly refuse, recycling and yard waste (from April to mid-November) pickups, as well as monthly bulk collections. John Benson, cleveland, 13 June 2022 The Aurora City Council is set to vote on an extension of its waste collection contract with Groot Industries Inc. for refuse, recyclables and yard waste. Steve Lord, chicagotribune.com, 8 Dec. 2021 Police who had conducted an eight-hour search of medical refuse at Republic Waste transfer station on Howard Avenue in Roxbury followed up with another search of the site based on the pathologist’s comments. Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 23 June 2022 This is seventeen and one half pounds per year of ‘hard stuff,’ mingled with sand, stems, impure molasses, olive oil, chips and concentrated dirt and refuse of all kinds. Mark Fischetti, Scientific American, 21 Sep. 2021 See More Word History
Etymology
Verb
Middle English, from Anglo-French refuser, from Vulgar Latin *refusare, perhaps blend of Latin refutare to refute and recusare to demur — more at recuse
Noun
Middle English, from Anglo-French, from refuser
First Known Use
Verb
14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1
Noun
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Adjective
15th century, in the meaning defined above
Phrases Containing refuse
Kids Definition
refuse 1 of 2
verb
re·fuse ri-ˈfyüz
refused; refusing
1
: to express unwillingness to accept : turn down (something)
I refused the job.
2
: to express or show unwillingness to do, give, or allow something
They refused to help.
refuse
2 of 2noun
ref·use ˈre-ˌfyüs
: trash sense 1, rubbish
refuse 1 of 3
verb
1
as in to reject
to be unwilling to grant the reclusive movie star usually refuses requests for interviews Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- reject
- deny
- decline
- withhold
- disallow
- forbid
- disapprove
- prohibit
- nix
- spurn
- negative
- restrict
- veto
- reprobate
- keep
- proscribe
- ban
- enjoin
- restrain
- hold
- check
- rebuff
- repel
- constrain
- impede
- repress
- curb
- hinder
- obstruct
- balk (at)
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- let
- allow
- permit
- afford
- concede
- provide
- give
- grant
- furnish
- okay
- supply
- authorize
- acquiesce
- license
- agree (to)
- warrant
- commission
- OK
- consent (to)
- accede (to)
- vouchsafe
- sanction
- assent (to)
- licence
- accord
2
as in to decline
to show unwillingness to accept, do, engage in, or agree to she refused the award, citing the hard work of others who deserved the recognition more than she did Synonyms & Similar Words
- reject
- decline
- ignore
- deny
- pass
- deny
- spurn
- avoid
- withdraw
- dismiss
- forbid
- dispute
- disapprove
- repudiate
- veto
- dispute
- deselect
- pass up
- turn down
- throw over
- nix
- throw out
- negative
- prohibit
- reprobate
- renounce
- overrule
- balk (at)
- rebuff
- disdain
- proscribe
- revoke
- retract
- disavow
- forbear
- disclaim
- scout
- recant
- scorn
- gainsay
- turn one's back on
- forswear
- stick
- refute
- contradict
- recall
- abjure
- disown
- blow off
- take back
- controvert
- bypass
- disallow
- disprove
- shoot down
- renege
- rebut
- negate
- foreswear
- unsay
- backtrack
- detour
- back down
- refrain (from)
- abstain (from)
- back off
- disagree (with)
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- accept
- approve
- tolerate
- receive
- take
- agree (to)
- adopt
- swallow
- embrace
- agree
- choose
- acquiesce
- welcome
- condone
- accede
- consent
- select
- countenance
- support
- assent
- espouse
- handpick
refuse
2 of 3noun
as in garbage
discarded or useless material refuse had littered the playground until our volunteer group cleaned it up Synonyms & Similar Words
- garbage
- debris
- trash
- rubbish
- dust
- junk
- truck
- litter
- sewage
- waste
- rubble
- scrap
- offal
- raffle
- chaff
- dross
- wash
- deadwood
- dreck
- riffraff
- offscouring
- spilth
- drek
- effluvium
- reject
- discard
- lumber
- wreckage
- dump
- ruins
- remains
- effluvia
- swill
- scrap heap
- nothing
- detritus
- cull
- crud
- trumpery
- straw
- slop
- flotsam
- two bits
- castoff
- jetsam
- throwaway
- odds and ends
- hand-me-down
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- catch
- find
- prize
- treasure trove
- treasure
- plum
- pearl
- gem
- jewel
- trove
- salvage
- valuable
- goodie
- goody
- booty
refuse
3 of 3adjective
as in waste
Synonyms & Similar Words
- waste
- ignored
- discarded
- neglected
- rejected
- jettisoned
- junked
- unattended
- forgotten
- untended
- castaway
- abandoned
- cast-off
- forsaken
- deserted
- godforsaken
- shabby
- vacated
- miserable
- void
- disused
- vacant
- derelict
- idle
- wretched
- empty
- desolate
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- saved
- recovered
- redeemed
- reclaimed
- salvaged
- retrieved
- restored
- rescued
- reconditioned
- rehabilitated
- rehabbed
- repeopled
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of refuse are decline, reject, repudiate, and spurn. While all these words mean "to turn away by not accepting, receiving, or considering," refuse suggests more positiveness or ungraciousness and often implies the denial of something asked for.
refused to lend them the money
In some situations, the words decline and refuse are roughly equivalent. However, decline often implies courteous refusal especially of offers or invitations.
declined his party's nomination
The synonyms reject and refuse are sometimes interchangeable, but reject implies a peremptory refusal by sending away or discarding.
rejected the manuscript as unpublishable
The words repudiate and refuse can be used in similar contexts, but repudiate implies a casting off or disowning as untrue, unauthorized, or unworthy of acceptance.
teenagers who repudiate the values of their parents
Although the words spurn and refuse have much in common, spurn stresses contempt or disdain in rejection or repudiation.
spurned his overtures of friendship