reject
Americanverb (used with object)
-
rejects,
present (3rd person singular)
-
rejected,
past participle, past
-
rejecting
present participle
-
to refuse to have, take, recognize, etc..
to reject the offer of a better job.
- Synonyms:
- deny
-
to refuse to grant (a request, demand, etc.).
- Synonyms:
- deny
-
to refuse to accept (someone or something); rebuff.
The other children rejected him. The publisher rejected the author's latest novel.
-
to discard as useless or unsatisfactory.
The mind rejects painful memories.
-
to cast out or eject; vomit.
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to cast out or off.
-
Medicine/Medical. (of a human or other animal) to have an immunological reaction against (a transplanted organ or grafted tissue).
If tissue types are not matched properly, a patient undergoing a transplant will reject the graft.
noun
-
rejects
plural
verb
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to refuse to accept, acknowledge, use, believe, etc
-
to throw out as useless or worthless; discard
-
to rebuff (a person)
-
(of an organism) to fail to accept (a foreign tissue graft or organ transplant) because of immunological incompatibility
noun
Synonym Usage
See refuse 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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rejecternoun
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rejectionnoun
-
prerejectverb (used with object)
-
quasi-rejectedadjective
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rejectableadjective
-
rejectiveadjective
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unrejectableadjective
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unrejectedadjective
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unrejectiveadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
rejectsimple
-
rejectssimple
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have rejectedperfect
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has rejectedperfect
-
am rejectingprogressive
-
are rejectingprogressive
-
is rejectingprogressive
-
have been rejectingperfect progressive
-
has been rejectingperfect progressive
Past
-
rejectedsimple
-
had rejectedperfect
-
was rejectingprogressive
-
were rejectingprogressive
-
had been rejectingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of reject
First recorded in 1485–95; (verb) from Latin rējectus, past participle of rējicere “to throw back,” equivalent to re- re- + jec-, combining form of jacere “to throw” + -tus past participle suffix
Explanation
When you reject something, you rule it out or dismiss it. If you're trying to pick a fancy restaurant to go to for your birthday, you'll probably reject the diner you went to just yesterday. The verb reject has several shades of meaning. Reject can mean to refuse to accept or agree with something. If you don't believe space aliens are living on earth, you reject the idea — you just don't believe it. Reject can also mean to treat someone with contempt: "My former best friend rejected me to hang out with a different crowd — but I found new friends with whom I had more in common."
Vocabulary lists containing reject
Dissed List: Breakup Words for Valentine's Day
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Essential English Vocabulary, List 3
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Schooled
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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.
See Examples For:
Within hours of Jackdaw being granted approval, a briefing campaign began suggesting that Fahnbulleh was "minded" to reject Rosebank.
From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026
Retail trade groups, however, reject the claim that digital tags are designed to manipulate prices to rip off consumers.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 23, 2026
The Fed chairman didn’t endorse or reject colleagues’ recent indications that the central bank is in no hurry to raise interest rates at its Oct. 27-28 meeting.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
Ultra-Orthodox residents reject the notion that they are taking over the city.
From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2026
Instinctively Hazel knew that their final act would reject Gaea’s power.
From "The Son of Neptune" by Rick Riordan
Last year, the United States launched a programme to resettle white Afrikaners who claim they face persecution in South Africa, which the government rejects.
From Barron's ● Oct. 26, 2026
A spokesperson for the city of Laguna Beach said the city was aware of the video and that it rejects hateful language and behavior of any kind.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 5, 2026
As corporate America rejects college branding, graduates would benefit from more hands-on experience.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
"Etihad categorically rejects any finding, conclusion or implication that suggests the airline has ever been involved in improper commercial arrangements," an Etihad spokesperson said in a statement.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
If she rejects me…well, it won’t be the worst thing that’s happened this summer.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
Markle has strongly rejected the accusations as "lies" which are being used to destroy his reputation.
From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026
And on Monday, a Supreme Court judge rejected McKechnie's appeal, saying the prisoner's "cultural rights are limited primarily by the fact he has been sentenced to a term of imprisonment".
From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026
Things went south after terminal operators in a Brazilian port rejected an aging tanker full of Russian diesel that Soglayev was supposed to sell, according to filings by Soglayev and some of his opponents.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026
A visible part of the discourse about the Cornell Seven reveals how some have flatly rejected the possibility that Doe was assaulted, attacked her credibility and her appearance, and labeled the case as a “hoax.”
From Salon ● Oct. 26, 2026
Meanwhile, the rejected taco is getting cold, and I’m hungry.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
“The anger we see among youths today has to do with rejecting a society where there’s no future,” she said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2026
For instance, someone who has repeatedly experienced rejection may become especially sensitive to signs that other people are rejecting them.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 19, 2026
"What we want is to establish an open and transparent profit-sharing system," Lin said, rejecting the company’s one-off bonus, which he said left employees "at the mercy of management".
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
Last month, Kelly issued a temporary restraining order requiring the administration to restore the outlets’ credentials, rejecting, at least at that stage, the administration’s national security rationale for yanking access.
From Salon ● Oct. 6, 2026
Critics of Jefferson’s visionary projections, like Adams, were then accused of rejecting the ideals themselves, when in fact they were merely exposing their illusory character.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
