rebut

Also found in: Thesaurus, Medical, Legal.

rebut

to argue to the contrary; disprove; confute: rebut an argument

Not to be confused with:

rebuff – blunt or abrupt rejection; snub; spurn: rebuff a proposal or invitation

rebuke – a sharp, stern disapproval of; reprove; reprimand; censure; admonish; reproach: rebuke his bad behavior

re·but

(rĭ-bŭt′)

v. re·but·ted, re·but·ting, re·buts

v.tr.

1. To refute, especially by offering opposing evidence or arguments, as in a legal case: rebut an allegation.

2. To repel or reject: She rebutted his advances.

v.intr.

To present opposing evidence or arguments.

[Middle English reboten, rebutte, to rebuke, repel, from Old French rebouter : re-, re- + bouter, to push (of Germanic origin; see bhau- in Indo-European roots).]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

rebut

(rɪˈbʌt)

vb, -buts, -butting or -butted

(tr) to refute or disprove, esp by offering a contrary contention or argument

[C13: from Old French reboter, from re- + boter to thrust, butt³]

reˈbuttable adj

reˈbuttal n

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

re•but

(rɪˈbʌt)

v. -but•ted, -but•ting. v.t.

1. to refute by evidence or argument.

2. to oppose by contrary proof.

v.i.

3. to provide some evidence or argument that refutes or opposes.

[1250–1300; Middle English reb(o)uten < Old French rebouter=re- re- + bouter to butt³]

re•but′ta•ble, adj.

rebut

, refute - To rebut a statement is to offer clear evidence or a reasoned argument against it; to refute a statement is to prove it wrong (neither means "contradict" or "deny").

rebut

Past participle: rebutted
Gerund: rebutting

Imperative
rebut
rebut

Present
I rebut
you rebut
he/she/it rebuts
we rebut
you rebut
they rebut

Preterite
I rebutted
you rebutted
he/she/it rebutted
we rebutted
you rebutted
they rebutted

Present Continuous
I am rebutting
you are rebutting
he/she/it is rebutting
we are rebutting
you are rebutting
they are rebutting

Present Perfect
I have rebutted
you have rebutted
he/she/it has rebutted
we have rebutted
you have rebutted
they have rebutted

Past Continuous
I was rebutting
you were rebutting
he/she/it was rebutting
we were rebutting
you were rebutting
they were rebutting

Past Perfect
I had rebutted
you had rebutted
he/she/it had rebutted
we had rebutted
you had rebutted
they had rebutted

Future
I will rebut
you will rebut
he/she/it will rebut
we will rebut
you will rebut
they will rebut

Future Perfect
I will have rebutted
you will have rebutted
he/she/it will have rebutted
we will have rebutted
you will have rebutted
they will have rebutted

Future Continuous
I will be rebutting
you will be rebutting
he/she/it will be rebutting
we will be rebutting
you will be rebutting
they will be rebutting

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been rebutting
you have been rebutting
he/she/it has been rebutting
we have been rebutting
you have been rebutting
they have been rebutting

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been rebutting
you will have been rebutting
he/she/it will have been rebutting
we will have been rebutting
you will have been rebutting
they will have been rebutting

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been rebutting
you had been rebutting
he/she/it had been rebutting
we had been rebutting
you had been rebutting
they had been rebutting

Conditional
I would rebut
you would rebut
he/she/it would rebut
we would rebut
you would rebut
they would rebut

Past Conditional
I would have rebutted
you would have rebutted
he/she/it would have rebutted
we would have rebutted
you would have rebutted
they would have rebutted

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Switch to new thesaurus

Verb	1.	rebut - overthrow by argument, evidence, or proof; "The speaker refuted his opponent's arguments" refute repudiate, disown, renounce - cast off; "She renounced her husband"; "The parents repudiated their son" controvert, contradict, oppose - be resistant to; "The board opposed his motion" answer - give a defence or refutation of (a charge) or in (an argument); "The defendant answered to all the charges of the prosecution"
	2.	rebut - prove to be false or incorrect controvert, refute confute, disprove - prove to be false; "The physicist disproved his colleagues' theories"

rebut

verb disprove, defeat, overturn, quash, refute, negate, invalidate, prove wrong, confute He spent most of his speech rebutting criticisms.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

rebut

verb

To prove or show to be false:

belie, confute, discredit, disprove, refute.

Translations

réfuter rejeter

respingere rifiutare

rebut

[rɪˈbʌt] VT → rebatir, impugnar

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

rebut

[rɪˈbʌt] vt [+ charge, allegation, objections] → réfuter

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

rebut

vt argument, contention → widerlegen; charges, allegations → entkräften

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

rebut

[rɪˈbʌt] vt (frm) → confutare

Mentioned in ?

References in classic literature ?

But there is another thing to rebut. They hint that all whales always smell bad.

View in context

However, the Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM), which is the regulations followed by the embassy in connection with visa processing and issuance, specifically instructs consuls, "You must give the alien the opportunity to rebut the presumption of willful misrepresentation by presentation of evidence to overcome it." This means that before being formally charged with fraud or misrepresentation, a person is supposed to first be given the opportunity to rebut the presumption of fraud or prove they had committed no fraud by presenting documents, evidence, and legal arguments demonstrating their innocence and eligibility for a visa.

You are supposed to have the opportunity to prove your innocence before being charged with fraud

Additional deputy prosecutor general of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Sardar Muzaffar Abbasi, however, asked for more time to rebut arguments of Mr Sharif's counsel.

Nawaz's counsel completes arguments in Al-Azizia case

He said: "Yes we are very good at rebutting those - I think it is 90% plus that we rebut.

Council allocates extra [pounds sterling]1m to deal with potholes in Cheshire East; Three times as many insurance claims were made this year between April and June as last year

Mendoza explained that the prosecution needs to highlight the "heart of the plunder law" so that the defense would be better prepared to negate or rebut these during the trial.

Bong Revilla trial delayed anew

Refiners however rebut that their profit structure has nothing to do with domestic oil prices, arguing it's the nation's high oil tax that should be blamed for the current gasoline prices.

Refiners wrongfully blamed for soaring gasoline prices

Tewari made a feeble attempt to turn the tables by insisting that Rai had been a part of the government as an IAS officer from 2004 to 2008, which would mean that he was party to the overall " brazenness." Neither, however, even attempted to rebut the central thrust of Rai's comments, which is that corruption in the UPA regime had become so routine that it was being done in the open.

Giving gyan a second chance

He boils Sunstein's argument in this regard down to ten key theses and seeks to rebut them one-by-one.

Cognitive infiltration; an Obama appointee's plan to undermine the 9/11 conspiracy theory

DAVID Cameron was set to use his keynote speech to the Tory conference today to rebut Labour's claim that his lack of experience makes him unfit to lead the country through a time of crisis.

Cameron says I'm the man to repair society

DAVID Cameron was using his keynote speech to the Conservative conference today to rebut Labour's claim that his lack of experience makes him unfit to lead the country.

Cameron's call

CITE

Site: Follow: Share:

Open / Close