Synonyms

disown

American

[dis-ohn] / dɪsˈoʊn /

verb (used with object)

to refuse to acknowledge as belonging or pertaining to oneself; deny the ownership of or responsibility for; repudiate; renounce.

to disown one's heirs; to disown a published statement.

Synonyms:

abjure, reject, disavow, disclaim

disown British

/ dɪsˈəʊn /

verb

(tr) to deny any connection with; refuse to acknowledge

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

disowner noun
disownment noun

Etymology

Origin of disown

First recorded in 1610–20; dis- ¹ + own

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

She had no grandparents to ask—her father’s parents were deceased, and her mother’s had disowned them for reasons Janet didn’t fully understand.

From Literature

About 10 years ago, when he first wanted to go public with the truth, his mother disowned him.

From The Wall Street Journal

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has effectively been fired out of a cannon — disowned by the Royal Family and the political classes, and stripped of his titles.

From BBC

He has disowned his previous Merkelism; as prime minister, he now champions Canada’s emergence as an “energy superpower” helping to restabilize the world and, not incidentally, Canada’s internal politics.

From The Wall Street Journal

If the ships are falsely flagged or flagged to a country that disowns them, the tankers can be subject to U.S. jurisdiction while in international waters.

From The Wall Street Journal

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023