English terms dictionary. 2015.
Refute — Re*fute (r?*F3t ), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Refuted}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Refuting}.] [F. r[ e]futer, L. refuteare to repel, refute. Cf. {Confute}, {Refuse} to deny.] To disprove and overthrow by argument, evidence, or countervailing proof; to prove to… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
refute — means ‘to prove (something) false by argument’, and the element ‘by argument’ is important; it should not be used simply as an alternative for deny or repudiate(or in some cases reject or dispute) which imply straightforward rejection without… … Modern English usage
réfuté — réfuté, ée (ré fu té, tée) part. passé de réfuter. Argument réfuté vingt fois … Dictionnaire de la Langue Française d'Émile Littré
refute — I verb abnegate, belie, cancel, confute, contend, contradict, contravene, controvert, crush, debate, defeat, demolish, deny, destroy, disaffirm, disclaim, discredit, dispose of, disprove, explode, falsify, gainsay, impugn, invalidate, negate,… … Law dictionary
refute — (v.) 1510s, refuse, reject, from L. refutare drive back, repress, repel, rebut, from re back (see RE (Cf. re )) + futare to beat, probably from PIE root *bhat to strike down (Cf. BAT (Cf. bat) (n.1 … Etymology dictionary
refute — confute, rebut, *disprove, controvert Analogous words: contradict, impugn, traverse, negative, contravene (see DENY) … New Dictionary of Synonyms
refute — [v] prove false; discredit abnegate, argue against, blow sky high*, break, burn, burn down, cancel, cancel out, confute, contend, contradict, contravene, convict, counter, crush, debate, demolish, disclaim, disconfirm, dispose of, disprove,… … New thesaurus
refuté — Refuté, [refut]ée. part … Dictionnaire de l'Académie française
refute — [ri fyo͞ot′] vt. refuted, refuting [L refutare, to repel, check: see RE & CONFUTE] 1. to prove (a person) to be wrong; confute 2. to prove (an argument or statement) to be false or wrong, by argument or evidence 3. to deny the truth or validity… … English World dictionary
refute — [[t]rɪfju͟ːt[/t]] refutes, refuting, refuted 1) VERB If you refute an argument, accusation, or theory, you prove that it is wrong or untrue. [FORMAL] [V n] It was the kind of rumour that it is impossible to refute. Syn: disprove 2) VERB If you… … English dictionary
