Definition of SPURN

spurn

Plural: spurns

Verb

Verb Forms: spurned, spurning, spurns

  • To reject with disdain or contempt.
  • reject with contempt
    • "She spurned his advances"
  • To reject disdainfully; contemn; scorn.
  • To reject something by pushing it away with the foot.
  • To waste; fail to make the most of (an opportunity)
  • To kick or toss up the heels.

Noun

  • An act of spurning; a scornful rejection.
  • A kick; a blow with the foot.
  • Disdainful rejection; contemptuous treatment.
  • A body of coal left to sustain an overhanging mass.

Examples

  • She would spurn any low-scoring word, always aiming for a bingo.

Origin / Etymology

From Middle English spurnen, spornen, from Old English spurnan (“to strike against, kick, spurn, reject; stumble”), from Proto-Germanic *spurnaną (“to tread, kick, knock out”), from Proto-Indo-European *sperH-.
Cognate with Scots spurn (“to strike, push, kick”), German spornen (“to spur on”), Icelandic sporna, spyrna (“to kick”), Latin spernō (“despise, distain, scorn”). Related to spur and spread.

Synonyms

disdain, freeze off, pooh-pooh, reject, scorn, turn down

Scrabble Score: 7

spurn: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
spurn: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
spurn: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 10

spurn: valid Words With Friends Word