different between deny vs disaffirm

English

Etymology

From Middle English denyen, from Old French denoier (“to deny, to repudiate”) (French dénier), from Latin denegare (“to deny, to refuse”), from de- (“away”) and negare (“to refuse”), the latter ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ne (“no, not”). Doublet of denegate.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /d??na?/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /d??na?/, /d?-/
• Rhymes: -a?
• Hyphenation: de?ny

Verb

deny (third-person singular simple present denies, present participle denying, simple past and past participle denied)

1. (transitive) To disallow or reject.
2. (transitive) To assert that something is not true.
3. (ditransitive) To refuse to give or grant something to someone.
   • 1754, Jonathan Edwards, An Inquiry into the Modern Prevailing Notions Respecting that Freedom of the Will which is supposed to be Essential to Moral Agency

     To some men, it is more agreeable to deny a vicious inclination, than to gratify it.
4. To take something away from someone; to deprive of.
5. (sports, transitive) To prevent from scoring.
6. To disclaim connection with, responsibility for, etc.; to refuse to acknowledge; to disown; to abjure; to disavow.
   • 1834-1874, George Bancroft, History of the United States, from the Discovery of the American Continent.

     the falsehood of denying his opinion

   • 1827, John Keble, The Christian Year

     thou thrice denied, yet thrice beloved

7. (obsolete) To refuse (to do or accept something).

Usage notes

• This is a catenative verb that takes the gerund (-ing). See Appendix:English catenative verbs.
• Deny can have a connotation that the denial is false; he denied knowing the accused has a more suspicious tone than he said he did not know the accused. However, in some formal usages, e.g. medical records, it can have a more neutral sense (patient denies chest pain).
• See refute.

Conjugation

Synonyms

• (assert something is not true): gainsay, contradict, withsay, refute, disclaim

Antonyms

• (disallow): allow
• (assert something is true): confirm, affirm

Derived terms

• deniability
• denier
• justice delayed is justice denied

Related terms

• denial

Translations

Anagrams

• E.D.N.Y., Ynde, dyne

English

Etymology

dis- +? affirm

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /d?s??f??m/

Verb

disaffirm (third-person singular simple present disaffirms, present participle disaffirming, simple past and past participle disaffirmed)

1. To deny, contradict or repudiate