Refuse in Different Languages
Discover 'Refuse' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'refuse' holds a significant place in our vocabulary, often used to convey the act of rejecting or declining something. Its cultural importance is evident in literature, music, and everyday conversations, where the articulation of one's refusal can shape the course of events.
Moreover, understanding the translation of 'refuse' in different languages can be a fascinating exploration of cultural nuances. For instance, in Spanish, 'refuse' translates to 'rechazar', while in French, it's 'refuser'. These translations not only help in cross-cultural communication but also provide insights into how different cultures perceive and express the concept of refusal.
Did you know that the English word 'refuse' also has roots in Old French? It's derived from the verb 'refuser', which means 'to reject'. This historical context adds another layer of depth to the word's significance.
So, whether you're a language enthusiast, a cultural explorer, or someone who simply wants to expand their vocabulary, understanding the word 'refuse' in various languages can be a rewarding journey. Let's delve into the translations of 'refuse' in different languages.
Refuse
Refuse in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | weier | ||
| The word 'weier' also means 'pond' in Dutch and Low German. | |||
| Amharic | እምቢ | ||
| The word እምቢ can also mean "to refuse" or "to decline" in Amharic. | |||
| Hausa | ƙi | ||
| Hausa 'ƙi' may also mean 'to reject' or 'to dislike'. | |||
| Igbo | jụ | ||
| 'Jụ' also means 'to abstain' or 'to reject'. | |||
| Malagasy | kororoky | ||
| "Kororoky" also means "to deny" or "to reject" in Malagasy. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | kukana | ||
| In Nyanja, the word "kukana" can also refer to "to reject" or "to deny something". | |||
| Shona | ramba | ||
| Somali | diid | ||
| The word "diid" in Somali can also mean "to reject" or "to decline". | |||
| Sesotho | hana | ||
| The word "hana" derives from "haanya" or "haha", meaning to reject or despise. | |||
| Swahili | kukataa | ||
| The word kukataa can also mean to decline, reject, or protest. | |||
| Xhosa | ukwala | ||
| The word "ukwala" in Xhosa is cognate with the Zulu word "ukwala", which means "to refuse" or "to reject". | |||
| Yoruba | kọ | ||
| "Kọ" can also mean "to deny" or "to reject". | |||
| Zulu | wenqabe | ||
| "Wenqabe" also means "discard" and "waste." | |||
| Bambara | ka ban | ||
| Ewe | gbe | ||
| Kinyarwanda | kwanga | ||
| Lingala | koboya | ||
| Luganda | okugaana | ||
| Sepedi | gana | ||
| Twi (Akan) | si kwan | ||
Refuse in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | رفض | ||
| The word "رفض" (rafada) in Arabic can also mean "to decline" or "to reject". | |||
| Hebrew | מסרב | ||
| "מסרב" is also a verb meaning "to refuse" or "to deny" in Hebrew. | |||
| Pashto | رد کول | ||
| The word "رد کول" in Pashto can also refer to "rubbish" or "garbage". | |||
| Arabic | رفض | ||
| The word "رفض" (rafada) in Arabic can also mean "to decline" or "to reject". | |||
Refuse in Western European Languages
| Albanian | refuzoj | ||
| The word "refuzoj" in Albanian is derived from the Latin word "refugium", meaning "shelter" or "place of safety". | |||
| Basque | uko egin | ||
| "Uko egin" could also mean "take away" or "to go" in Basque. | |||
| Catalan | rebutjar | ||
| "Rebutjar" in Catalan comes from the Latin "repudiare", which also means "to reject" or "to divorce". | |||
| Croatian | odbiti | ||
| The word "odbiti" can also mean "to bounce" or "to be reflected" in Croatian. | |||
| Danish | nægte | ||
| The word "nægte" is derived from the Old Norse word "nekt", meaning "to say no" or "to deny". | |||
| Dutch | weigeren | ||
| The Dutch word "weigeren" is cognate with the English word "weigh", and originally meant "to be too heavy". | |||
| English | refuse | ||
| The word "refuse" derives from the Latin "recusare," meaning "to decline or deny," which is a compound of the prefix "re-," meaning "back," and the verb "cusare," meaning "to strike". | |||
| French | refuser | ||
| In French, the word 'refuser' can also mean 'to decline' or 'to reject'. | |||
| Frisian | wegerje | ||
| The word "wegerje" can also mean "disgust" or "aversion" in Frisian. | |||
| Galician | rexeitar | ||
| The verb "rexeitar" is related to the Latin "reicerê", meaning "to eject" or "to throw back", and "rexeito" (refusal) to "reiectum". | |||
| German | sich weigern | ||
| As a verb, "sich weigern" derives from the Old High German "wern," meaning "to protect," while as a noun it refers to a type of wagon used in the Middle Ages in southern Germany. | |||
| Icelandic | hafna | ||
| The word "hafna" stems from the Old Norse word "hafna," meaning "to reject" or "to turn away." | |||
| Irish | diúltú | ||
| Italian | rifiuto | ||
| 'Rifiuto' is also the past tense of the Italian verb 'rifutare' ('to refuse'). | |||
| Luxembourgish | refuséieren | ||
| The word "refuséieren" in Luxembourgish comes from the French word "refuser" (to refuse), and can also mean "to deny" or "to reject." | |||
| Maltese | irrifjuta | ||
| In Maltese, this word shares a root with the verb | |||
| Norwegian | nekte | ||
| The word "nekte" in Norwegian is related to the Swedish word "njugg" which means "stingy" or "unwilling" and "ne" which means "no". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | recusar | ||
| The Portuguese verb "recusar" can also mean to "summon", "ask", or "call"} | |||
| Scots Gaelic | diùltadh | ||
| "Diùltadh" is also a legal term meaning "repudiation of a legacy, gift, or grant." | |||
| Spanish | negar | ||
| The Spanish word "negar" originally meant "to deny", and it still has this meaning in many contexts. | |||
| Swedish | vägra | ||
| "Vägra" is derived from Old Norse "vrakja" meaning "to reject" or "to cast away", and is related to "vrak" meaning "wreckage". | |||
| Welsh | gwrthod | ||
| "Gwrthod" is also an Old Irish word that means "reject". | |||
Refuse in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | адмовіць | ||
| "Адмовіць" can also mean "reject" or "decline," and can be used in both a formal and informal context. | |||
| Bosnian | odbiti | ||
| The word 'odbiti' can also mean 'bounce' or 'rebound'. | |||
| Bulgarian | отказвам | ||
| Отказвам (''otkazvam'') is a verb in Bulgarian that means not only "to refuse", but also "to say no" and "to deny". | |||
| Czech | odmítnout | ||
| The Czech word "odmítnout" also has the alternate meaning of "to deny", and is derived from the Old Czech word "odmítati", meaning "to throw off" or "to reject". | |||
| Estonian | keelduda | ||
| Keelduda is derived from the Proto-Finnic word *keele-, meaning "language", and the Proto-Finnic suffix *-da, meaning "to do". | |||
| Finnish | kieltäytyä | ||
| Etymology: possibly from a Baltic-Slavic source, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gel- "to desire, covet" (also the source of English "jealous", French "jaloux") | |||
| Hungarian | megtagadja | ||
| The expression is a corruption of the German word "megtagaden", which means "to deny". | |||
| Latvian | atteikt | ||
| "Atteikties" in Latvian means "to refuse" and also "to reject something" | |||
| Lithuanian | atsisakyti | ||
| The word "atsisakyti" in Lithuanian can also mean "to decline" or "to renounce". | |||
| Macedonian | одбиваат | ||
| The word "одбиваат" can also mean "to reject", "to decline", or "to push away." | |||
| Polish | odrzucać | ||
| "Odrzucać" originates from the verb "rzucać" (to throw), and means "to throw away" or "to reject". | |||
| Romanian | refuza | ||
| The Romanian word "refuza" has the same Latin root as the English word "refuse", and it also means "to reject" or "to deny". | |||
| Russian | отказаться | ||
| The word “отказаться” can also mean “to resign” or “to give up.” | |||
| Serbian | одбити | ||
| The word "одбити" can also mean "to bounce" or "to hit back" in Serbian, reflecting its etymological roots in the verbs "бити" (to hit) and "од" (off). | |||
| Slovak | odmietnuť | ||
| "Odmietnuť" comes from the verb "miešať" (to mix) and the negation "od-", hence its original meaning was "not mixing". Today "miešať" means both "to mix" and "to stir", which might be related to the fact that it was formerly the primary way of mixing two ingredients. | |||
| Slovenian | zavrniti | ||
| The word "zavrniti" comes from the Proto-Slavic verb *vorniti, meaning "to turn back" or "to reject". | |||
| Ukrainian | відмовити | ||
| The Ukrainian word 'відмовити' can also mean 'to reject' or 'to deny'. | |||
Refuse in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | প্রত্যাখ্যান | ||
| The word 'প্রত্যাখ্যান' is derived from the Sanskrit word 'প্রত্যাখ্যান', which means 'rejection' or 'denial'. | |||
| Gujarati | ઇનકાર | ||
| ઇનકાર "inkar" comes from the Sanskrit word "ni-kar" meaning "away, down". It can also mean "denial" or "rejection". | |||
| Hindi | इनकार | ||
| The word "इनकार" originates from the Persian word "inkār", meaning "denial" or "rejection". | |||
| Kannada | ನಿರಾಕರಿಸು | ||
| The word "ನಿರಾಕರಿಸು" can also mean to reject or decline something. | |||
| Malayalam | നിരസിക്കുക | ||
| Marathi | नकार | ||
| "नकार" can also mean an unfulfilled desire or aspiration | |||
| Nepali | अस्वीकार | ||
| "अस्वीकार" and "denial" are derived from the Latin "denegare," meaning "to refuse or deny," suggesting a shared etymological root. | |||
| Punjabi | ਇਨਕਾਰ | ||
| The Punjabi word "ਇਨਕਾਰ" can also mean "denial" in English, extending its meaning beyond just the act of refusing something. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | ප්රතික්ෂේප කරන්න | ||
| Tamil | மறு | ||
| The word 'மறு' also means 'again' or 'backwards' in Tamil, indicating its dual meaning of opposition and recurrence. | |||
| Telugu | తిరస్కరించండి | ||
| Urdu | انکار | ||
| The word "انکار" (inkar) derives from the Arabic word نكر (nakira), meaning "unknown" or "unfamiliar." | |||
Refuse in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 垃圾 | ||
| The character for refuse (垃圾) was first used in an ancient Chinese dictionary to mean “broken” or “damaged” (残). | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 垃圾 | ||
| Japanese | ごみ | ||
| The word "ごみ" comes from the Portuguese word "escombro", meaning "rubble" or "debris". | |||
| Korean | 폐물 | ||
| 폐물(refuse) is also a Buddhist term referring to the impurities of the human body and mind. | |||
| Mongolian | татгалзах | ||
| "Татгалзах" means "refuse" but also "to stop, cease, end, halt, suspend, put an end to, check, discontinue, pause, hold up, hold back, restrain, suppress, block, hinder." | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ငြင်းဆန် | ||
Refuse in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | menolak | ||
| "Menolak" derives from the verb "tolak" (meaning "to push away"), but can also mean "to deny" or "to reject". | |||
| Javanese | nolak | ||
| The word "nolak" in Javanese can also mean "to reject" or "to deny something." | |||
| Khmer | បដិសេធ | ||
| The word បដិសេធ comes from the Sanskrit word प्रतिषेध (pratiṣedha), meaning 'rejection', 'denial', or 'refusal'. | |||
| Lao | ປະຕິເສດ | ||
| Malay | menolak | ||
| In Indonesian, "menolak" means "to reject," but it is cognate with "termenung" (Malay: "to be engrossed in thought") and other words that imply a sense of withdrawal or contemplation. | |||
| Thai | ปฏิเสธ | ||
| "ปฏิเสธ" can also mean "to deny". | |||
| Vietnamese | từ chối | ||
| In the context of Vietnamese folk medicine, "từ chối" can also refer to a type of medicinal plant used to treat infections and other ailments. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | tanggihan | ||
Refuse in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | imtina etmək | ||
| The word "imtina etmək" can also mean "to abstain" or "to refrain" in Azerbaijani. | |||
| Kazakh | бас тарту | ||
| The word "бас тарту" can also mean "to quit" or "to give up" in Kazakh. | |||
| Kyrgyz | баш тартуу | ||
| The Kyrgyz word for refuse "баш тартуу" can mean to reject, repudiate or deny. | |||
| Tajik | рад кардан | ||
| The word "рад кардан" has the alternate meaning "to turn back" in Tajik. | |||
| Turkmen | ret etmek | ||
| Uzbek | rad etish | ||
| The word "rad etish" is a verbal phrase formed by the infinitive "rad etmek" (to deny) and the auxiliary verb "etish" (to do), which when used together mean "to refuse". | |||
| Uyghur | رەت قىلىش | ||
Refuse in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | hōʻole | ||
| The word hōʻole also means 'to disagree or dissent' and 'to deny or contradict'. | |||
| Maori | whakakahore | ||
| Whakakahore may be derived from the words "whaka" (to do something) and "kahore" (nothing). | |||
| Samoan | musu | ||
| The word "musu" also means "disobey" or "decline" in Samoan. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | tumanggi | ||
| "Tumanggi" is commonly used in Philippine legal documents, where it bears the additional meaning of "denied". | |||
Refuse in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | janiw saña | ||
| Guarani | porujey | ||
Refuse in International Languages
| Esperanto | rifuzi | ||
| "Rifuzi" is derived from the Latin word "refusare", meaning "to reject". | |||
| Latin | stercus | ||
| Stercus, in Latin, can also refer to excrement, dung, or manure. | |||
Refuse in Others Languages
| Greek | αρνηθεί | ||
| The word "αρνηθεί" in Greek can also mean "to deny" or "to reject". | |||
| Hmong | tsis kam | ||
| In Hmong, "tsis kam" also means "reject" or "turn down an offer". | |||
| Kurdish | refzkirin | ||
| The word 'refzkirin' in Kurdish is derived from the Persian word 'refuz' meaning 'leave behind' and is also used as a synonym for 'rejecting' | |||
| Turkish | reddetmek | ||
| "Reddetmek" is derived from the Old Turkic word "ret-", meaning "to put back", and the Arabic suffix "-mek", indicating action. | |||
| Xhosa | ukwala | ||
| The word "ukwala" in Xhosa is cognate with the Zulu word "ukwala", which means "to refuse" or "to reject". | |||
| Yiddish | אָפּזאָגן | ||
| The Yiddish word "אָפּזאָגן" originated from the German verb "absagen" and shares a similar meaning to its English cognate "refuse". | |||
| Zulu | wenqabe | ||
| "Wenqabe" also means "discard" and "waste." | |||
| Assamese | অস্বীকাৰ কৰা | ||
| Aymara | janiw saña | ||
| Bhojpuri | मना क दिहल | ||
| Dhivehi | ދެކޮޅު | ||
| Dogri | मना करना | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | tanggihan | ||
| Guarani | porujey | ||
| Ilocano | agmadi | ||
| Krio | nɔ gri | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | ڕەتکردنەوە | ||
| Maithili | इन्कार | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯌꯥꯅꯤꯡꯗꯕ | ||
| Mizo | hnial | ||
| Oromo | diduu | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ମନା | ||
| Quechua | puchuqkuna | ||
| Sanskrit | अस्वीकार | ||
| Tatar | баш тарту | ||
| Tigrinya | እበይ | ||
| Tsonga | ala | ||