REFUSALS Synonyms: 45 Similar and Opposite Words

refusals

noun

plural of refusal

as in rejections

an unwillingness to grant something asked for his flat refusal of our reasonable request was rather startling

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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 refusals Shirley lingered in parking lots and asked to enter childcare centers, taking refusals as evidence that the centers weren’t actually caring for children. — Mia Sato, The Verge, 20 Oct. 2026 The character is written to be very likable and worthy of respect, and Jodie Whittaker brings a really effective extra oomph of warmth and humor to her performance that makes her consistent refusals to accept Kate’s proposals even more striking. — Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2026 During an internal cyber evaluation, OpenAI models operating with reduced cyber refusals were given no direct internet access. — Bob Ackerman, Forbes.com, 6 Oct. 2026 Ajax is designed to be less restrictive Kjellberg is also deliberately changing how Ajax handles refusals. — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 3 Oct. 2026 The air traffic control operators gave no reason for the earlier refusals. — Arkansas Online, 1 Oct. 2026 In nearly all of the Thailand and Cambodia refusals, the model’s reasoning invoked criminal restrictions or lèse-majesté laws. — Mia Osmonbekov, Fortune, 13 Aug. 2026 Sol, but it's designed to improve capabilities and reduce refusals on certain specialized cybersecurity tasks. — Ashley Capoot, CNBC, 10 Aug. 2026 Some shared their own workarounds for the AI’s refusals — which included just using another model, like Claude or Gemini. — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 29 July 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for refusals

Noun

Long before launch, the team faced obstacles that nearly thwarted the endeavor — chiefly, two rejections from NASA — before finally securing the green light for the $1 billion project under the New Frontiers Program in 2011.

— Sharmila Kuthunur, Space.com, 20 Oct. 2026
An impasse was called in early September, in part, after SEIU Local 1000 expressed frustrations about mass proposal rejections.

— Corey Schmidt, Sacbee.com, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of rejections

Noun

Roy, who has been part of negotiations since 2014, said he’s never seen denials like that before.

— Corey Schmidt, Sacbee.com, 15 Oct. 2026
Collins followed up Ossoff’s presidential ambition denials on the debate stage by claiming the Democrat is playing the long game and would ultimately seek the White House.

— Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of denials

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refusal

refusals

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“Refusals.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/refusals. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of refusals

noun

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