verb
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to reject (a person or thing) with contempt
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archaic to kick (at)
noun
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an instance of spurning
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archaic a kick or thrust
Related Words
See refuse 1.
Other Word Forms
- outspurn verb (used with object)
- spurner noun
Etymology
Origin of spurn
First recorded in 1250–1300; (verb) Middle English spurnen, Old English spurnan; cognate with Old Saxon, Old High German spurnan, Old Norse sporna “to kick”; akin to Latin spernere “to put away”; (noun) Middle English: “a kick, contemptuous stroke,” derivative of the verb
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.
For most of the past century, it would have been unthinkable for BYU’s coach to spurn a blueblood like Penn State, with all the in-built advantages it offered in recruiting.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 5, 2025
With surprising speed, however, this country’s leaders came to spurn McKinley’s embrace of a colonial empire with its costly, complicated occupation of overseas territories.
From Salon • Mar. 7, 2025
They could spurn both and opt for less expensive starting pitchers, which has been their preferred strategy for years.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 28, 2023
Portland Public Schools teachers were poised Tuesday to spurn a last-ditch offer from the district, launching a strike starting Wednesday that would shutter all 81 schools.
From Seattle Times • Nov. 1, 2023
The first I chose was Céline Varens—another of those steps which make a man spurn himself when he recalls them.
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
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.
