gainsay

American  

[geyn-sey, geyn-sey] / ˈgeɪnˌseɪ, geɪnˈseɪ /

verb (used with object)

gainsaid, gainsaying

1. to deny, dispute, or contradict.

2. to speak or act against; oppose.

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gainsay British  

/ ɡeɪnˈseɪ /

verb

1. archaic (tr) to deny (an allegation, a statement, etc); contradict

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Other Word Forms

• gainsayer noun
• ungainsaid adjective

Etymology

Origin of gainsay

First recorded in 1250–1300, gainsay is from the Middle English word gainsaien. See again, say ¹

Explanation

Gainsay, a verb, means "contradict" or "speak out against." When you challenge authority, you gainsay, as in teachers don't like it when unruly students gainsay them. Gainsay comes from an Old English word that means "contradict" or "say against," as in, "no one dared gainsay the principal, who is well-known for giving detention to students who so much as frown at him." If you know someone who constantly corrects others, tells them that they're wrong, and says, "That's not true," more than anyone else, you have first-hand experience with the art of the gainsay.

Example Sentences

As an Episcopal priest, I’d be the last person to gainsay the importance of prayer.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 27, 2022

He’s only bringing it up to gainsay it: The best revenge, he argues, is revenge.

From Slate • Feb. 26, 2020

He’s not sure he has “the emotional fuel” for another presidential run, and no one can gainsay that for a father who has lost a son.

From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 2, 2015

Doyle’s enthusiasm for the Mars One experience thus far, which she describes as “probably the best and strangest of my life”, is hard to gainsay.

From The Guardian • May 30, 2015

He spoke with an earnestness that it was hard to gainsay.

From "Murder on the Orient Express" by Agatha Christie