Oxford Thesaurus - An A-Z Dictionary Of Synonyms

discard v. 1 get rid of, dispense with, dispose of, throw away or out, toss out or away, abandon, jettison, scrap, Colloq trash, dump, Slang ditch: We discarded boxes of old photographs when we moved house.

--n. 2 reject, cast-off: I felt like a discard from the lonely hearts club.

discernible

adj. 1 perceptible, visible, seeable, perceivable, apparent, clear, observable, plain, detectable; conspicuous, noticeable: A small sailing-boat was discernible on the horizon. 2 distinguishable, recognizable, identifiable, distinct: To me there is a discernible difference between puce and burgundy.

discharge v. 1 release, let out, dismiss, let go, send away; pardon, exonerate, liberate, (set) free, acquit, let off, absolve: She

was discharged from hospital yesterday. He was discharged from police custody last week. 2 expel, oust, dismiss, cashier,

eject, give notice, Colloq sack, give (someone) the sack, fire, kick out: He was discharged from his job yesterday. 3 shoot, fire (off); set or let off, detonate, explode: It is illegal to discharge a firearm or other explosive device in this area. 4 emit, send out or forth, pour out or forth, gush; disembogue; ooze, leak, exude; excrete, void: The sore in his leg continued to discharge pus. We can ill afford to discharge those effluents into the sea. 5 carry out, perform, fulfil, accomplish, do, execute: He faithfully discharges the duties of his office. 6 pay, settle, liquidate, clear, honour, meet, square (up):

Before going off on holiday, we discharged all our financial obligations. 7 unload, offload, disburden, empty: After discharging its cargo, the vessel rode high in the water.

--n. 8 release, dismissal: What is the date of his discharge from the clinic? 9 expulsion, ouster, dismissal, ejection, notice, Colloq the axe or US ax, the sack, the boot, Chiefly US

and Canadian walking papers, Slang US and Canadian the bounce, the gate: Her discharge from the firm was rather ignominious.

10 shooting, firing (off), report, shot; salvo, fusillade,

volley; detonation, explosion, burst: The discharge of a pistol could not be heard at that distance. I heard the discharge from the guns of the firing squad in the courtyard below. The discharge of the bomb maimed three children. 11 emission,

release, void, voiding, excretion, excreting, emptying, flow; ooze, oozing, pus, suppuration, secretion, seepage: The discharge of blood from the wound continued. 12 performance, fulfilment, accomplishment, execution, observance, achievement: The discharge of my family responsibilities will have to await my return from the front. 13 payment, settlement, liquidation, squaring (up), clearance: The bank expects full discharge of

all debts before they lend any money. 14 unloading, disburdening, offloading, emptying: The customer will pay in full after the discharge of his cargo.

disciple n. 1 apprentice, pupil, student, proselyte, learner, scholar: Pietro Zampollini was a disciple of the great artist Ravelli. 2 follower, adherent, devotee, admirer, votary; partisan, fan, aficionado: She is a disciple of Louis Armstrong's.

disciplinarian

n. taskmaster, martinet, drill-sergeant; tyrant, despot, dictator: The headmaster at Briarcliffe was a stern disciplinarian who regularly used to beat us.

discipline

n. 1 training, drilling, regimen, exercise, practice, drill, inculcation, indoctrination, instruction, schooling: Strict discipline is good for young people, according to my father. 2 punishment, penalty, chastisement, castigation, correction: The discipline meted out to senior students was very harsh. 3 order, routine, (proper) behaviour, decorum: The sergeant is there to maintain discipline among the recruits. 4 direction, rule, regulation, government, control, subjection, restriction, check, curb, restraint: There was far too much discipline during my childhood, both at school and at home. 5 subject, course, branch of knowledge, area, field, speciality or chiefly US and Canadian specialty: Latin is a discipline which is fast disappearing from our schools.

--v. 6 train, break in, condition, drill, exercise, instruct, coach, teach, school, indoctrinate, inculcate; edify, enlighten, inform: The aim of his education is to discipline him to respond to orders. 7 check, curb, restrain, bridle, control, govern, direct, run, supervise, manage, regulate, hold or keep in check, US ride herd on: You have to discipline those children or they will always misbehave. 8 punish, chastise,

castigate, correct, penalize, reprove, criticize, reprimand, rebuke: Discipline that boy or he will just do it again.

disclose v. 1 reveal, impart, divulge, betray, release, tell, blurt out, blab, leak, let slip, report, inform, Colloq spill the beans, blow the gaff, Slang squeal, snitch, squeak, rat, peach, US fink: To get a shorter sentence, he disclosed all to the police. 2 bare, reveal, expose, uncover, show, unveil: When the pie was opened, twenty-four blackbirds were disclosed.

discomfit v. 1 embarrass, abash, disconcert, disturb, confuse, make uneasy or uncomfortable, discompose, fluster, ruffle, confound, perturb, upset, worry, unsettle, unnerve, Colloq rattle, US

faze, discombobulate: Being short, she was discomfited by references to her height. 2 frustrate, foil, thwart, baffle,

check, defeat, trump, outdo, outwit, overcome: Discomfited by her violent reaction, her attacker fled.

discomfort

n. 1 uneasiness, hardship, difficulty, trouble, care, worry, distress, vexation: She hasn't known the discomfort of being the wife of a miner. 2 ache, pain, twinge, soreness, irritation; bother, inconvenience, nuisance: Some discomfort persisted in my legs long after the accident.

disconcerted

adj. discomposed, discomfited, ruffled, uneasy, put out or off, uncomfortable, queasy, flustered, agitated, upset, shaken, unsettled, perturbed, confused, bewildered, perplexed, baffled, puzzled, US thrown off, Colloq rattled, US fazed, discombobulated; Slang (all) shook (up): They were really disconcerted by the arrival of the police.

disconcerting

adj. awkward, discomfiting, off-putting, upsetting, unnerving, unsettling, disturbing, confusing, confounding, bewildering, perplexing, baffling, puzzling: I found his persistence quite disconcerting.

disconnect

v. separate, disjoin, disunite, uncouple, detach, unhook, undo, disengage, unhitch; cut or break off; cut or pull apart, part, divide, sever: They disconnected the engine after pushing the

carriages onto a siding. Disconnect the power before changing the light-bulb.

disconnected

adj. 1 unconnected, separate, apart, unattached; split, separated: A totally disconnected thought suddenly occurred to me. 2 incoherent, irrational, confused, illogical, garbled, disjointed, rambling, mixed-up, unintelligible, uncoordinated, random: He lost the debate because his argument was disconnected and lacked cogency.

discontent

n. displeasure, unhappiness, dissatisfaction, discontentment, distaste, uneasiness; malaise: He felt discontent at being barred from the club.

discontented

adj. displeased, dissatisfied, discontent, annoyed, vexed, fretful, irritated, testy, piqued, petulant, disgruntled, exasperated, Colloq fed up, Slang browned off, pissed off, Brit cheesed or brassed off: The umpire's decision made many fans quite discontented.

discontinue

v. cease, break off, give up, stop, terminate, put an end to, quit, leave off, drop; interrupt, suspend: Please discontinue newspaper delivery until further notice.

discord n. strife, dissension, disagreement, conflict, disharmony, contention, disunity, discordance, division, incompatibility:

The seeds of discord between the families were sown generations before.

discordant

adj. 1 contrary, disagreeing, divergent, opposite, opposed, adverse, contradictory, incompatible, differing, different, conflicting, at odds, incongruous, in conflict, in disagreement, at variance, dissimilar: The testimony of the fossils is discordant with the evidence in the legend. 2 inharmonious, dissonant, jarring, cacophonous, unmelodious, unmusical, harsh, strident, jangling, grating: He struck some discordant notes on his zither.

discount v. 1 reduce, mark down, deduct, lower, take or knock off: As I was buying a dozen, he discounted the price by ten per cent. 2 diminish, lessen, minimize, detract from: One must discount

what she says when she's angry. 3 disregard, omit, ignore, pass or gloss over, overlook, brush off, dismiss: Those statistics

are old and can be discounted.

--n. 4 reduction, mark-down, deduction, rebate, allowance: The shop overstocked the item and is offering it at a big discount.

discourage

v. 1 dispirit, dishearten, daunt, unman, dismay, cow,

intimidate, awe, overawe, unnerve: We were discouraged by the arrival of more enemy troops. 2 deter, put off, dissuade,

advise or hint against, talk out of, divert from; oppose, disapprove (of), Colloq throw cold water on: They discouraged me from applying again. 3 prevent, inhibit, hinder, stop, slow, suppress, obviate: This paint is supposed to discourage corrosion.

discourteous

adj. uncivil, impolite, rude, unmannerly, ill-mannered, bad-mannered, disrespectful, misbehaved, boorish, abrupt, curt, brusque, short, ungentlemanly, unladylike, insolent,

impertinent, ungracious: He had been discourteous and would not be invited again.

discover v. 1 find (out), learn, perceive, unearth, uncover, bring to light, turn or dig up, smoke or search out, root or ferret out; determine, ascertain, track down, identify; locate: He

discovered the ninth moon of Saturn. We discovered why the tyre had gone flat. 2 see, spot, catch sight or a glimpse of, lay

eyes on, behold, view, encounter, meet (with); notice, espy, descry, detect, discern: He discovered Madagascar lying right on their course. 3 originate, conceive (of), devise, contrive, invent, make up, design, pioneer; come or chance or stumble upon: She discovered a method for tin-plating gold.

discovery n. 1 finding, recognition, uncovering, determining, ascertaining, unearthing; origination, invention, conception, idea; development: Who is credited with the discovery of Christmas Island? That year marks the discovery of a vaccine against smallpox. 2 exploration, disclosure, detection,

n. 1 tact, diplomacy, prudence, care, discernment, sound judgement, circumspection, sagacity, common sense, good sense, wisdom, discrimination: You can rely on my discretion not to reveal the club's secrets. 2 choice, option, judgement, preference, pleasure, disposition, volition; wish, will, liking, inclination: Buyers may subscribe to insurance cover at their own discretion.

discriminate

v. 1 distinguish, separate, differentiate, discern, draw a distinction, tell the difference: He cannot discriminate between good art and bad. 2 favour, disfavour, segregate, show favour or prejudice or bias for or against, be intolerant: It

is illegal here to discriminate against people on the basis of race, creed, or colour.

discriminating

adj. discerning, perceptive, critical, keen, fastidious, selective, particular, selective, fussy, refined, cultivated:

From the wine you chose, I see you are a lady of discriminating tastes.

discrimination

n. 1 bigotry, prejudice, bias, intolerance, favouritism, one-sidedness, unfairness, inequity: In Nazi Germany discrimination was practised against everyone except the Nazis. 2 taste, perception, perceptiveness, discernment, refinement, acumen, insight, penetration, keenness, judgement, sensitivity; connoisseurship, aestheticism: He exercises excellent discrimination in his choice of paintings.

discursive

adj. wandering, meandering, digressing, digressive, rambling, circuitous, roundabout, diffuse, long-winded, verbose, wordy, prolix, windy: Frobisher was again boring everyone with his discursive description of life in an igloo.

discuss v. converse about, talk over or about, chat about, deliberate (over), review, examine, consult on; debate, argue, thrash out: We discussed the problem but came to no conclusion.

discussion

n. conversation, talk, chat, dialogue, colloquy, exchange,

deliberation, examination, scrutiny, analysis, review; confabulation, conference, powwow; debate, argument; Colloq chiefly Brit chin-wag, US and Canadian bull session: The subject of your dismissal came up for discussion yesterday.

disdainful

adj. contemptuous, scornful, contumelious, derisive, sneering, superior, supercilious, pompous, proud, prideful, arrogant, haughty, snobbish, lordly, regal; jeering, mocking, insolent, insulting, Colloq hoity-toity, high and mighty, stuck-up, highfalutin or hifalutin; Slang snotty: She was most disdainful of our efforts to enter the cosmetics market.

disease n. 1 sickness, affliction, ailment, malady, illness, infection, complaint, disorder, condition, infirmity, disability, Archaic murrain, Colloq bug: The colonel contracted the disease while in Malaysia. 2 blight, cancer, virus, plague; contagion: Panic spread through the Exchange like an infectious disease.

diseased adj. unhealthy, unwell, ill, sick, ailing, unsound, infirm, out of sorts, abed, infected, contaminated; afflicted, abnormal: We must care for the diseased patients before those with broken bones.

disembark v. land, alight, go or put ashore, get or step off or out, leave; debark, detrain, deplane: Tomorrow we disembark at Tunis.

disembodied

adj. incorporeal, bodiless; intangible, immaterial, insubstantial or unsubstantial, impalpable, unreal; spiritual, ghostly, spectral, phantom, wraithlike: She wafted before his eyes, a disembodied spirit.

disenchanted

adj. disillusioned, disabused, undeceived, disappointed; blas‚, indifferent, jaundiced, sour(ed), cynical: I'm afraid she's now thoroughly disenchanted with her job.

disengage v. loose, loosen, unloose, detach, unfasten, release, disconnect, disjoin, undo, disunite, divide, cleave (from), separate, uncouple, part, disinvolve, extricate, get out (of), get away (from), cut loose, throw off, shake (off), get rid of,

break (with or from), break (up) (with); unbuckle, unhitch, unclasp, unlatch, unbolt, unlock, unleash, unfetter, unchain, unlace, unhook, unbind, untie; (set) free, liberate, disentangle: She was holding on to me so tenaciously that I could hardly disengage myself.

disfavour n. 1 disapproval, dislike, displeasure, disapprobation, unhappiness: Katerina regards your decision with disfavour. 2 disesteem, discredit, dishonour, disgrace, disrepute: After

last night's events, we are really in disfavour with the management.

--v. 3 disapprove (of), dislike, discountenance, frown on or upon: We strongly disfavour the merger.

disfigured

adj. marred, damaged, scarred, defaced, mutilated, injured, impaired, blemished, disfeatured, deformed, distorted, spoilt or spoiled, ruined: Plastic surgery has repaired her disfigured face.

disgrace n. 1 ignominy, shame, humiliation, embarrassment, degradation, debasement, dishonour, discredit, disfavour, disrepute,

vitiation, infamy; disesteem, contempt, odium, obloquy, opprobrium: His conduct has brought disgrace on his family. 2 blemish, harm, aspersion, blot, scandal, slur, stigma, vilification, smirch, smear, stain, taint, black mark: The way she has been treated by the company is a disgrace.

--v. 3 shame, humiliate, embarrass, mortify: He has been disgraced by his son's cowardice. 4 degrade, debase, dishonour, discredit, disfavour, vitiate, defame, disparage, scandalize,

slur, stain, taint, stigmatize, sully, besmirch, smirch,

tarnish, smear, asperse, vilify, blacken, drag through the mud, reflect (adversely) on: Once again his actions have disgraced the family name.

disgraceful

adj. 1 shameful, humiliating, embarrassing, dishonourable, disreputable, infamous, ignominious, degrading, debasing, degraded, debased, base, low, vile, corrupt, bad, wrong, sinful, evil, low, mean, despicable, contemptible, opprobrious: He was forced to submit to the most disgraceful punishment. 2

shameless, outrageous, notorious, shocking, scandalous, improper, unseemly, unworthy; indecent, rude, flagrant, lewd, lascivious, delinquent, objectionable: Your drunken behaviour at the party last night was a disgraceful performance.

disgruntled

adj. displeased, dissatisfied, irritated, peeved, vexed, cross, exasperated, annoyed, unhappy, disappointed, discontented, put out; malcontent, discontent, testy, cranky, peevish, grouchy, grumpy, moody, sullen, sulky, ill-humoured, bad-tempered, ill-tempered, Colloq fed up, Slang browned off, Brit cheesed off: He was disgruntled at the thought of having to go shopping in the pouring rain.

disguise v. 1 camouflage, cover up, conceal, hide, mask: The van was disguised as a hay wagon. 2 misrepresent, falsify, counterfeit, fake, deceive: They have disguised the true profits to avoid paying taxes.

--n. 3 guise, identity, cover-up, camouflage, appearance, semblance, form, outfit, costume: She appeared in the disguise of a policewoman. 4 pretence, deception, dissimulation, fa‡ade, semblance, Colloq front: Disguise is seldom resorted to by spies these days.

disgust v. 1 sicken, offend, nauseate, repel, revolt, put off, outrage, appal, Slang gross out: His patronizing attitude disgusts those who work for him.

--n. 2 revulsion, nausea, sickness, repugnance, fulsomeness, outrage, distaste, aversion: One look at the food filled me with disgust. 3 loathing, contempt, hatred, abhorrence, odium,

animus, animosity, enmity, antagonism, antipathy, dislike: Some feel disgust at the thought of eating insects.

disgusted adj. nauseated, sickened, nauseous, queasy; offended, outraged, Colloq fed up (with), sick (of), sick and tired (of); Slang US grossed out: Disgusted customers complain about delays in service.

disgusting

adj. nauseating, sickening, offensive, outrageous, sick-making, fulsome, repulsive, revolting, repugnant, off-putting,