reject
Americanverb (used with object)
-
rejects,
present (3rd person singular)
-
rejected,
past participle, past
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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
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to throw out as useless or worthless; discard
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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
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prerejectverb (used with object)
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quasi-rejectedadjective
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rejectableadjective
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rejectiveadjective
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unrejectableadjective
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unrejectedadjective
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unrejectiveadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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rejectsimple
-
rejectssimple
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have rejectedperfect
-
has rejectedperfect
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am rejectingprogressive
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are rejectingprogressive
-
is rejectingprogressive
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have been rejectingperfect progressive
-
has been rejectingperfect progressive
Past
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rejectedsimple
-
had rejectedperfect
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was rejectingprogressive
-
were rejectingprogressive
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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:
Picture a developer trying to build a hillside home; a commission that’s wary of such projects could reject it, while another commission that leans more pro-housing could approve it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
It was brave, as a 17-year-old, to reject Manchester City and move to a new country, but the young winger was vindicated with rapid progress at Dortmund.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
Charging-station availability was the leading reason for consumers to reject EVs this year, according to a May survey from JD Power, followed closely by charging speed.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 30, 2026
While initial opinion polls had indicated that the vote might be tight, the final two surveys suggested a clear majority of voters -- well above 60 percent -- would reject the initiative.
From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026
To say one body of evidence is superior to another is to adopt the viewpoint of one community and reject that of another.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
In any normal industry, that would have put the Raiders at an enormous disadvantage, sorting through everyone else’s rejects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
She supports equipping immigrant agents with training to enforce the law professionally and rejects enforcement tactics that “undermine public trust and confidence in our institutions.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
She firmly rejects the notion that she and her sister should expect an inheritance.
From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2026
Both his supporters and critics have labeled him a whistleblower, which he rejects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
How, though, are we to explain the peculiar fact that della Porta both believes in and rejects the garlic/magnet antipathy?
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
You’re not wrong that millions of wide-eyed and, perhaps, naive homebuyers have their applications rejected every year.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 5, 2026
In another, he said he had been rejected by a woman who wanted to be a barista rather than a homemaker.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
Shiloh rejected suggestions she was spreading harmful misinformation, describing herself as a human rights advocate.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
On Tuesday, the justices rejected a different appeal from Pike.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
The machine hummed and rejected the disc once more.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
Cornell has said it supported presenting the case to a grand jury, while rejecting as "false" claims that it failed to punish those involved.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
TikTok has questioned the actor's "national fame", rejecting his accusations that the account was free-riding on a well-known brand in a violation of Japan's unfair competition prevention laws.
From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026
The Chinese government is also rejecting any idea of a slowdown.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026
Andrew Tate, who has more than 10 million followers on X, has built a loyal following by promoting a hypermasculine lifestyle, built around fast cars and women, while vocally rejecting feminism.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
Peeta lets it lie on his open palm, neither rejecting nor accepting it.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
