What does "abjure" mean?
To solemnly reject (someone or something); to abandon (someone or something) forever; to disavow, to disclaim, to repudiate.
Abjure
/əbˈd͡ʒʊə(ɹ)/ verb
verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: To solemnly reject (someone or something); to abandon (someone or something) forever; to disavow, to disclaim, to repudiate.
- Grammar: abjure is listed as verb.
- Nearest alternatives: forswear, abandon, abdicate, abnegated.
- Useful contrasts: adhere, affirm, confess.
- Usage evidence: Those who were banished from the country were required to forever abjure their right to return.
How to use "abjure"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "abjure" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "abjure" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "abjure" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "abjure" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "abjure" is acting as verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "forswear" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "abjure", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Verb
- 1 To solemnly reject (someone or something); to abandon (someone or something) forever; to disavow, to disclaim, to repudiate. formal, transitive
"to abjure errors"
- 2 formally reject or disavow a formerly held belief, usually under pressure wordnet
- 3 To renounce (something) upon oath; to forswear; specifically, to recant or retract (a heresy or some other opinion); to withdraw. formal, historical, transitive
"to abjure allegiance to a prince"
- 4 To cause (someone) to recant or retract (a heresy or some other opinion). formal, historical, transitive
"[T]hey vvere betrayed, and then many of them to the number of ſix or ſeven ſcore vvere abjured, and three or four of them burnt. Novv although vve knevv not hovv to call theſe Martyrs vvho ſo ſuffered, their Names no doubt are vvritten in the Book of Life."
- 5 Especially in abjure the realm: to swear an oath to leave (a place) forever. formal, historical, transitive
"When a clerk heretofore was convicted of felony, he might have saved his life by abjuring the realm; that is, by departing the realm within a certain time appointed, and taking an oath never to return. But at this day all statutes for abjuration are repealed."
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 To cause or compel (someone) to leave a place forever; to banish. formal, historical, obsolete, rare, transitive
"The ſtrong effect of theyr conceiued ire, / Vrging the vveake King vvith a violent hand, / T' abiure thoſe falſe Lords from the troubled land."
- 7 To solemnly reject; to abandon forever. formal, intransitive
"Eaſily canſt thou find one miſerable, / And not inforc'd oft-times to part from truth; / If it may ſtand him more in ſtead to lye, / Say and unſay, feign, flatter, or abjure?"
- 8 To recant or retract a heresy on oath. formal, historical, intransitive
"Nor neuer yet found I ani. j. [any one] but he would once abiure, though he neuer intended to kepe his othe."
- 9 To swear an oath to leave a place forever. formal, historical, intransitive
"I Abiowre⸝ I forſake myne errours as an heretyke dothe⸝ or forſwere the kynges landes⸝ ie abiure, prime coniugationis."
Example
"Those who were banished from the country were required to forever abjure their right to return."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "abjure"?
Common synonyms include: forswear, abandon, abdicate, abnegated, abnegating, abstain.
How do you use "abjure" in a sentence?
Those who were banished from the country were required to forever abjure their right to return.
How do you pronounce "abjure"?
Pronounced /əbˈd͡ʒʊə(ɹ)/.
Etymology
From Late Middle English abjuren (“to give up (something); to recant or renounce (something) under oath”), from Anglo-Norman abjurer, Middle French abiurer, abjurer, and Old French abjurer (“to reject or renounce (something) on oath”) (modern French abjurer), and from their etymon Latin abiūrāre, the present active infinitive of abiūrō (“to deny on oath, recant, renounce, repudiate, abjure”), from ab- (prefix meaning ‘away from, from’) + iūro (“to take an oath, swear, vow”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂yew- (“(adjective) right; straight; upright; (noun) justice; law; right”).